Burn Mark Blog Tour: June 25th

Fires, fires burning bright in the forests of the night...join me on this exiting blog tour!

http://www.facebook.com/BloomsburyTeens

The Unquiet by Jeannine Garsee

Sixteen-year-old Rinn Jacobs has secrets: One, she’s bipolar. Two, she killed her grandmother. 


After a suicide attempt, and now her parents' separation, Rinn and her mom move from California to the rural Ohio town where her mother grew up. Back on her medications and hoping to stay well, Rinn settles into her new home, undaunted by the fact that the previous owner hanged herself in Rinn's bedroom. At school, her classmates believe the school pool is haunted by Annaliese, a girl who drowned there. But when a reckless séance goes awry, and terrible things start happening to her new friends—yet not to her—Rinn is determined to find out why she can’t be "touched" by Annaliese...or if Annaliese even exists. 


With the help of Nate Brenner, the hunky “farmer boy” she’s rapidly falling for, Rinn devises a dangerous plan to uncover the truth. Soon reality and fantasy meld into one, till Rinn finds it nearly impossible to tell the difference. When a malevolent force threatens the lives of everyone she cares about--not to mention her own--she can't help wondering: who should she really be afraid of?


Annaliese? Or herself?


Goodreads


 Netgalley is the blogger's best friend. There is no denying it. After seeing this book and some others by Bloomsbury (look for upcoming blog tours), I was completely hooked from the first page. Ghost stories are something that will usually grab me instantly and with the edgy character that Rinn has, I loved it immediately. 


Overall:


4.5/5


The way the author takes her work at a psychiatric hospital and gives Rinn some very real problems was something that made this book special. The ghost element combined with the enigma of mental illness was a compelling mystery that unfolded like a complex piece of origami. If you like ghost stories or are a fan of Ellen Hopkins and her edgy real life issues, this is a book you will enjoy. Look for it on bookstore shelves in July of 2012.

A Breath of Eyre by Eve Marie Mont

Emma Townsend has always believed in stories—the ones she reads voraciously, and the ones she creates in her head. Perhaps it’s because she feels like an outsider at her exclusive prep school, or because her stepmother doesn’t come close to filling the void left by her mother’s death. And her only romantic prospect—apart from a crush on her English teacher—is Gray Newman, a long-time friend who just adds to Emma’s confusion. But escape soon arrives in an old leather-bound copy of Jane Eyre…




Reading of Jane’s isolation sparks a deep sense of kinship. Then fate takes things a leap further when a lightning storm catapults Emma right into Jane’s body and her nineteenth-century world. As governess at Thornfield, Emma has a sense of belonging she’s never known—and an attraction to the brooding Mr. Rochester. Now, moving between her two realities and uncovering secrets in both, Emma must decide whether her destiny lies in the pages of Jane’s story, or in the unwritten chapters of her own…


Goodreads

When the publisher told me about this book, it sounded like one I would really enjoy. Jane Eyre was one of the books I loved from my school reading days. Who couldn't love the troubled Mr. Rochester and the governess who claimed him as her own, despite the odds?


This book was so much more than that, however. Take a modern girl who has grief issues from the death of her mother and the isolation of boarding school and cross it with the story of Jane Eyre and you have a tale that will keep you turning the pages.


Overall:


I loved this book for the characters, the voice and the energy in which it moved from scene to scene. Emma is a character that reaches out to all of us as she tries to deal with the isolation of being in a place where she does not belong. I am eagerly awaiting more from this author and I hope this series will continue!


5/5

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting — he’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. 




The monster in his backyard is different. It’s ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth. 




From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd — whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself — Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined.


Goodreads

This book was brought to my attention by a wonderful friend who is always telling me great books to read. He did, in fact loan me his copy until mine arrived from the publisher for review. I had to struggle not to cry all over it. 


This book, at first glance, looks very much like a monster in the closet, creeping up the dark and hollow places kind of book. In some ways it is, but not like you think. 


First, there are monsters. Yes. Of course. What kind of story would it be without one? Patrick Ness has created a story that is a tribute to those dealing with bullying, grief and death. Heavy prospect. But this book does it and with a grace to its pages that left me breathless and openly sobbing as I turned the last page. I can't remember the last time a book did that for me. 


Without telling everything in the story (but oh, I really, really want to this time!) I can tell you that it is wonderful for anyone dealing with hardships in life. Grief, death, bullying, anger issues, discontent at home...you name it, it's in there, complete with some pretty amazing artwork to boot. 


And finally, the biggest monsters may not even be the ones in the closet, or staring in through the window...they may be in the darkest recesses of our soul.


Overall:
5/5

Social Punk Blog Tour and Giveaway!

Ima would give anything to escape The Dome and learn what’s beyond its barriers, but the Chicago government has kept all its citizens on lockdown ever since the Scorched Years left most of the world a desert wasteland. When a mysterious group of hooded figures enters the city unexpectedly, Ima uncovers a plot to destroy The Dome and is given the choice between escaping to a new, dangerous city or staying behind and fighting a battle she can never win.


Goodreads


I received this e-book from the author in conjunction with the blog tour. It is a great futuristic adventure!


What I Liked:


This book had a voice that grabbed you from the first page. "E" as Ima likes to be called, is a character you can identify with even as she is drawn from a world of terror at the hands of someone who is supposed to be protecting her, and lead into a world that is unlike anything she has ever known. (No spoilers here!)


What I Didn't:


Not a thing. 


Overall:


Social Punk is a foray into different forms of reality and is very much for an older teen audience, due to some sexual situations. They are handled well, however, and do not detract from the story in any way. If anything, they serve to give Ima greater depth. If you enjoyed The Hunger Games you should give this book, soon to be a trilogy, a try!


4/5


Here are some excerpts from the book:


*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *



Excerpt #1: Prologue


After playing God for six years with the world he created, he couldn’t control any of his subjects, none at all. Over the years, he had watched them evolve and become the sum of their own choices rather than the sum of his; and for that, he regretted ever giving them life.


A small, blinking red light from just inside his eyelid reminded him of the news they sent him earlier that morning. The company had cancelled his funding and would shut down his project within three months. According to them, the project cost too much and took up too much space, and the inconclusive results couldn’t be published reputably, now or in the future.


Six years of his work, tens of thousands of lives at stake—and he could do nothing to save any of it. He bowed his head, letting his chin rest on the rim of his breakfast smoothie. The smoothie reeked of powder—crushed pills—but he supposed he had better get used to it. He wouldn’t be able to afford the luxury of real food after they canned him.


He closed his eyes and called up the camera view of one of his favorites, number 3281. She fascinated him; he couldn’t deny it. When he had designed her, her pre-teen rebelliousness lit fire in her eyes. A survivor, he’d thought. He’d meant for her to have it all—to grow up, to get married to the love of her life, and to have a beautiful family of her own someday.


But he had only given her sadness so far. Instead of creating a strict father, he had given her an abusive one. Instead of creating a loving boyfriend, he had given her a friend who could never love her. And instead of creating a strong, proud mother, he had given her a meek one, who watched the whole thing unfold and did nothing about it.


He looked at his last and final creation sitting in the chair across from him—his own son, not awakened yet. The law forbade him to have any children of his own, so this boy would substitute.


But he had done the unthinkable with this creation—he had bestowed on it his own thoughts, emotions, and decision-making processes. He’d given the boy his own mind, his own physical characteristics, his own wants and desires.


He had never done so with any of the others because of the dangers of investing too heavily in any one of his subjects. But who could he kid? He had not stayed objective thus far, watching some of his subjects more closely than others, wishing for the happiness of some at the expense of others. He had become an abomination, a monster of his own doing, who had created subjects only to watch them suffer.


He couldn’t forgive himself; not now, not ever. His eyes lingered on the vial that sat next to his breakfast smoothie, that he’d stowed away for the day when they destroyed all his work, his entire world. He would save it, tuck it away for now, for as long as he could protect them. When things spun out of his control, he would drink it and end himself the way he had ended them.


In the ancient stories, gods frequently gave their sons as gifts. Now, he would give his son as a gift to her, number 3281. So she could be happy in her last months on earth, before they destroyed her with the rest of them.


Excerpt #2: Food-related


Twelve cups of water sat on the table, four for each of them. Next to each cup sat a pill—yellow for fat, red for carbs, blue for protein, and green for vitamins.


Vaughn took the red pill, ripped it in half like a pack of sugar, and poured it into his cup. He set his cup into a contraption on the table and it whirled and hissed. When the machine finished, the cup had a pink, swirly liquid inside.


Nahum looked at the four cups in distaste.


“Not up to your standards?” Vaughn asked, shooting his drink. He swallowed the mixture in one large gulp. “I would get you something else, but we’re rebuilding our hash. We can’t afford real food, plus it’s bad for you anyway. Extremely difficult to maintain a balanced diet.”


“Synthetic food can’t cost that much,” Nahum countered. He grinned. “We had it in our little fake world, at least.”


Vaughn chuckled. “Synthetic food is even worse for you than real food. Shortens your life. We stopped eating that stuff at the turn of the century. It gave people long-term hyperactivity, which can kill you. LTH took out a lot of the population, kind of like cancer in your day, except a bigger deal because the population had dwindled so low already. Plus, people live indefinitely now.”


Nahum’s nose twitched as he laughed. “People don’t live indefinitely.”


But Vaughn looked genuinely surprised. “Of course we do. Have you seen anyone who looks over the age of twenty-five to you?”


“What does that mean, though?” Ima asked out of curiosity. “How could you live indefinitely? You may not look older, but you still age.”


Vaughn grinned. “Like I said before—there’s a lot you don’t understand about this world.”


Excerpt #3: Fashion-related


A woman with long purple eyelashes, who kind of reminded Ima of a butterfly, brushed by Ima with tattooed art entirely covering both her arms. One of the tattoos started out as a young boy who grew just a little older with each second, until he looked like a man. To Ima’s amazement, the tattoo played like a home video.


Ima looked at Vaughn for explanation. “How—?”


“Pixel skin-grafts,” Vaughn whispered into ima’s ear. “Some people do their entire bodies in them. Doesn’t do much in terms of protection, but lets you change your outfit on a Clout.”

Monica Leonelle is a well-known digital media strategist and the author of three novels. She blogs at Prose on Fire (http://proseonfire.com) and shares her writing and social media knowledge with other bloggers and authors through her Free Writer Toolkit (http://proseonfire.com/free-writer-toolkit).




And now for the contest! Only a few days left to enter!

Feature and Follow Friday

The question of the week is:

What was the best and worst book you have read in the last month?

Best: Pure by Julianna Baggott

I loved it for the YA cross-over and the dystopian themes.

The worst book I have been trying to get through in the last month but probably won't be able to finish is  Among Others by Jo Walton.

 I had high hopes for this book. Usually anything with witchery and fairies will have me thrilled and reading like a fiend. The format of this book is done in lots of diary entries with not very much point to it all. There are many mentions of excellent sci fi books which is good, but I am feeling like this book is a never ending misery fest that is just not going anywhere. I was bored and I hate being bored with a book I was excited about. (sighs sadly)

Thanks for joining me on the hop! Stay tuned for some great giveaways coming your way!

Article 5: The Review

New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned. 


The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes. 


There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don't come back. 


Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren't always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it's hard for her to forget that people weren't always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It's hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different. 


Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow. 


That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings—the only boy Ember has ever loved.


Goodreads


Article 5 showed up in my mailbox one day and boy am I glad it did. Dystopian novels are fast becoming one of my favorite genres. The plot is steady and unpredictable and I couldn't wait to get to the next page. The main characters are flawed, which makes them all the more believable. The descriptions of some of the experiences were so real, I could hear the action in my head, just like a movie. In fact, I found myself yelling at the book when a character did something I thought was crazy, or breathing fast when they were running for their lives.


What I liked:


The fast paced action, plot, characters that were flawed enough to make them real.


What I didn't:


Not a thing. 


Overall:


I think this book is up there with my favorite dystopian books that I have read recently. It would be a great candidate for a movie and if you like The Hunger Games you will love this book. The characters are interesting, the question of whether or not the government has the right to take over your life with extreme moral codes is super compelling and the harrowing adventures will keep you on the edge of your seat. Make sure you put this one on your to be read list.


4.5/5

Masque of the Red Death: Available In April

Everything is in ruins. 

A devastating plague has decimated the population. And those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles to pieces around them. 

So what does Araby Worth have to live for? 

Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery make-up . . . and tantalizing ways to forget it all. 

But in the depths of the club—in the depths of her own despair—Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club. And Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither boy is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does. 

And Araby may find something not just to live for, but to fight for—no matter what it costs her.(less)

Goodreads

This book grabbed me the moment I laid eyes on the cover. Simple gorgeous and full of mystery. Who is the girl with the shadowy parasol? Why is her face hidden? Why are her arms bared? Interesting...

What I Liked:

This book takes a classic Poe tale and gives it a dystopian twist that I found very appealing. The ruins of society, a disease taking over what is left combined with a war between science and religion make this an exciting read. The characters are flawed by grief and struggle to exist in a world of political intrigue, disease and despair. The cover art alone got me interested enough to dive in head first and I was not disappointed. In fact, this book was a page turner and the ending has me ready for a second book. (I hope there is one.)

What I Didn't:

This book is for older teens-the drug abuse party life is for a mature group, but that being said, it is handled well.

Overall:

4.5/5

This book was a page turner and the romance element continually had me guessing. Science vs. religion is a powerful subject. Combine that will flawed characters you grow to love and a world that is teetering on the brink of disaster and you have a fast paced read that will keep you enthralled. This book will be available in April, so make sure you put it on your Goodreads to be read list.

Fever: Chemical Garden Trilogy Book Two

Rhine and Gabriel have escaped the mansion, but danger is never far behind. 


Running away brings Rhine and Gabriel right into a trap, in the form of a twisted carnival whose ringmistress keeps watch over a menagerie of girls. Just as Rhine uncovers what plans await her, her fortune turns again. With Gabriel at her side, Rhine travels through an environment as grim as the one she left a year ago - surroundings that mirror her own feelings of fear and hopelessness. 


The two are determined to get to Manhattan, to relative safety with Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan. But the road there is long and perilous - and in a world where young women only live to age twenty and young men die at twenty-five, time is precious. Worse still, they can’t seem to elude Rhine’s father-in-law, Vaughn, who is determined to bring Rhine back to the mansion...by any means necessary. 


In the sequel to Lauren DeStefano’s harrowing Wither, Rhine must decide if freedom is worth the price - now that she has more to lose than ever.


Goodreads

The Chemical Garden Trilogy is a great dystopian world with characters put into harrowing situations that not many of us would know what to do with. Imagine a genetic disorder that kills before you reach adulthood, forcing girls into marriage arrangements to keep the human race alive until the scientists can discover what is killing everyone off by the age of 25. Enslaved by her circumstances, Rhine, the main character takes her life in her hands when she tries to escape to find her twin brother. 

While the start to the book was a little slower than I would have liked, it quickly ramped up and was a roller coaster ride through the perils of a carnival devoted to prostitution and Rhine's search for her brother and the illness that takes her over. The end of the book (no spoilers here!) was a cliff hanger that had me letting out a howl and threatening to hold my breath for book three. 

4.5/5

What I liked:

The story development is good. You don't know which direction it is going and I like that. Rhine is a sympathetic character and you can't help but feel for her as she fights to maintain choices in a world where girls are only valued as property and for their body. The suspense building is stellar and by the end I was turning pages faster than my fingers could work. 

**Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of this great book. I liked it so much I ended up buying it for my Nook and iPad e-book collection.

What I didn't:

The beginning was a little slow and it was a little frustrating to watch  the drug addiction portion of the book. Story wise, it makes sense to keep the characters subdued this way (with drugs) but I was chomping at the bit for them to move to another part of the story. Also having the hero half dead from addiction was not as romantic as I would have liked-but this is dystopian fiction. Things are rarely ever perfect, so it does fit. It just frustrated me at the time.

Overall:

I think this book is a great continuation of The Chemical Garden Trilogy and well worth the read. Book three can't come quick enough.

Tooth and Nail: Interview with author Jennifer Safrey

Gemma Fae Cross, a tough-girl amateur boxer whose fiance is running for congress, has just made a startling discovery about herself. She is half faerie - and not just any faerie, but a tooth faerie A hybrid of fae and human, Gemma is destined to defend the Olde Way and protect the fae - who are incapable of committing violence - from threats to their peaceful and idyllic way of life, which must be maintained by distilling innocence collected from children''s baby teeth. But when a threat to the fae mission emerges, Gemma is called upon to protect her heritage, and become a legendary fae warrior... even if it means sacrificing everything she knows about being human. 

Goodreads

There are some books that grab you the second you see the cover. Yes, I know. It is shallow, but cover art matters. So does the story hidden under it. Happily, the wonderful publisher sent me a copy of this amazing book to review. Tooth fairies, boxing, kick butt fae politics and the hidden terrors masked behind the shining facade of your neighborhood dentist. (shudder) This book was one rocking great time and I was even more thrilled when author Jennifer Safrey took some time out of her busy life to answer a few questions.

What I liked:

The use of tooth fairies as fae is unique. Except for that memorable movie with the Roc, I don't remember another tooth fairy book or film. Gemma is a tough character with depth that you can't help but start to care about. Every piece of dialog and action is well written and the plot is original with exceptional orchestration. This book is a sleeper that I want to tell everyone about. This book is an adult title, but with moderate language and a few glossed over sex scenes it is a great YA crossover.

What I Didn't:

Why, oh why couldn't it have been another five or six hundred pages? (*sob*) I hope it becomes more than just one book. 

Overall:

The plot, characters and voice are amazing and I can't wait to read more from Ms. Safrey. Gemma is a character that will stick in my mind for a long time. I can honestly say that I will be looking a little more closely at the samples I get from the dentist. Excellent book. Make sure you post it on your Goodreads page as a book to read this year. 

5/5

Now for the interview!

1. When did you find yourself interested in the fae?

 I am a longtime fan of paranormal romance and urban fantasy (even back when romance writers were told it's a small niche market!), and after a long period of time travel and vampires and shapeshifters, I began to see fae pop up here and there. I like fae as a catch-all term for the supernatural, and I suppose that's how I use it in my book.

2. What are some of your favorite faerie movies and books?

I loved, my whole life, the fairy tales that were as likely to turn out gruesome as happy, like Grimm stories. The crazier the story, the more real it seemed to me. I mean, the princess was so pissed at the frog for taking advantage of her that she picked him up and threw him against the wall as hard as she could, and that was when he became a prince. The best part is that the frog had been holding the princess accountable for broken promises, and she was beyond angry that he was right. Impetuous Gemma would totally do that, even though it was not the right thing to do, but she is a human caught in a fairy tale. That's great stuff.

3. Did you write with music playing while you were working, or did any particular music inspire you?

 I really can't write to music. Lyrics are something I memorize and listen to so if I hear words being sung I can't concentrate on creating my new words. Sometimes I listen to wordless yoga music, which is nice, but I listen to that so much at my studio now that it doesn't really translate well anymore in the writing part of my life.

4. Gemma is a fierce heroine and a character I have come to care about in only a few pages. How did she come about?

 When I created Gemma I really wanted to set her apart from other urban fantasy heroines. The problem is, I love urban fantasy heroines, so differentiating her but still keeping the kind of moxie I love was not easy. I wanted her to be more real, somehow. I wanted the reader to come away with feeling that she is always human first, fae second. And humans make a lot of mistakes. In some scenes, her timing really sucks. She is quick to emotionally react to things. But deep down, she is intrinsically good. She doesn't want to kill anyone, even the bad guy...and that was crucially important to me in building her character. In a lot of urban fantasy there is a lot of killing, and often killing with zero remorse because in those worlds, that is the expectation. But if Gemma is a human first, she's no more likely to kill someone as any normal human. Warrior or not, she thinks murder is not what you do. I worked very hard to make that come across as heroic and not righteous.

5. Tooth fairies are an original topic when you think of faerie tales and even current fiction or movies (except for that really interesting movie with The Roc in a tutu).  What made you decide to take faeries down this road? 

 I did a writing exercise some years ago with a freewriting group and the prompt was to write something from the point of view of the tooth fairy. I think I was the only one really interested in what came out of that. I thought about it for a long time. I saw that paranormal stories were beginning to feature fae and I wondered what angle of fae wasn't being covered, and wondered what I could really bring to the table in terms of unusual and unexpected. I ended up with an amateur boxer fae warrior. Go figure. :)

6. Outlining is something I am learning a greater appreciation for. Do you outline or write by the seat of your pants?

 If I don't have a contract I have a tendency to just meander around with writing, but if I am under contract I can't mess around. I have tried having extensive outlines and I think I don't do it because once the outlines are done, I am drained of energy to creatively fill in the blanks. At this point, I outline three chapters ahead. I know the beginning, the end, the general middle, and the general direction the story is going in, and so I'm always plotting the chapter I'm writing, and two chapters ahead. It's like a flashlight in the woods. My flashlight won't go to the edge of the woods and the way out, but if I illuminate enough of the space in front of me, I'll find my way.

7. What is your best advice to prospective writers out there? (Every scene is down pat and your dialog and movements are solid.  Wonderful!)

 I guess my best advice is to get physical with the writing. I read every single scene, every single dialogue exchange out loud, many times, until it sounded like I wasn't reading, but just saying casually. Only then did I know it wasn't stilted. For the final showdown fight, I took stuffed animals and made each one a character and moved them around my office to make sure their actions made sense. I pantomimed every kick, every punch, to feel if it was genuine and gauge what the character's effectiveness could be. Of course, if you'd opened the door to my office and saw me pretending to 360-degree roundhouse kick my teddy bear, you'd think I was nuts, but it worked for me. I'm not a spatial thinker so I need to see everything in front of me. I loved this part of the writing...getting phsyical with it. If you do it, and you feel it, your readers will feel it too.

8. Your descriptions of being in the ring at the gym are very visceral and real. It is not your typical meat market gym either, but the not so posh side that makes it interesting. Have you ever participated in sports in that setting? Did you find your experience was like Gemma's?

 I did some boxing for a few months. It was at a trendy gym but they did have an actual boxing ring and I loved it. My instructor was a black belt in taekwondo and encouraged me to give that a try because I must have done something to make him think that could be my thing. I moved to taekwondo, trained for years, and earned my black belt.I competed a little bit, but then I opened my yoga studio, and the new business left no time for martial arts training. Recently, though, I began to study muay thai. It's nice to be training again. I tried a little jiu-jitsu and I might pursue that as well. Gemma has had a much more hardcore, inner-city experience than I ever did, but I liked the idea that not only is she accepted at a tough boxing gym, but she is considered a real leader there because of her tenure. Competitive fighting is really opening up for women, expecially in mixed martial arts. Also, for the first time in the Olympics this year, there will be a women's division in boxing. I think even women who don't fight for sport are inspired by and respect other women who do use their bodies and their brains to fight competitively. And I know from experience that men will respect a female fighter. I certainly am not the best muay thai fighter in my class of all men but I am always treated equally. I like that Gemma is showing female readers this side of sport, this surprisingly fair dynamic between genders in a gym setting.

Many thanks to Jennifer Safrey for this 

great interview! Thanks also to Night Shade Books for

providing a review copy of Tooth and Nail.

We will be looking forward to your new writing

projects and hoping for another glimpse of Gemma

and the morning fae!

Pure by Julianna Baggott:

We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . . . 

Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run. 

Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . . \

There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her. 

When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.

Goodreads

This book had me sneaking off into corners every second I got. Optioned for a movie and a three book deal, it has every element of a page turner. If you loved The Hunger Games you have to read this book.

It is unique because it was marketing as an adult title but has a YA crossover. The three main characters are teens caught up in a world that has gone terribly awry and they struggle to find the answers they are looking for. An outstanding read! Characters you care about, dialog and movement that are flawless and a plot to keep you turning the pages long after you should be asleep. Double thumbs up!

5/5

New and Interesting for the A List Crowd: My Favorite Mistake

Tommi, Zara, and Kate are all elite riders on the A Circuit. Tommi, the billionaire heiress, is training a young horse to prove she can make horses a real career. But when her new beau, Alex, convinces her to skip a horse show to party in the Hamptons, the results could be disastrous. Zara, the celebutante wild child, is finally taking her riding seriously. Until the new "nanny" her dad hires threatens to upstage Zara's party girl status. Then there's Kate. She doesn't have money to burn like the others, but she does have Fitz, the barn's resident hot guy. But when the pressure of being a working student builds, Kate's perfectionist tendencies threaten to get in the way of her relationship and her riding.

Readers who are growing out of the Canterwood Crest series or searching for an A-list fix have found just what they're looking for in the A Circuit series.

Goodreads

This book will appeal to anyone who enjoys a good A-list romp or novels with horses. It was a light read and I enjoyed the book. The dialog was snappy, the characters were believable and was a novel that is perfect if you want a beach read or something light and fluffy with a bit of party girl drama thrown in for good measure.

3.5/5

Reading Now (And Awesome): Born Wicked

"Blessed with a gift..."cursed" with a secret." 
Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they're witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship - or an early grave. 
Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word . . . especially after she finds her mother's diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family's destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra. 
If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren't safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood - not even from each other.

Goodreads

***

This book grabbed me from the first page! Review coming soon!

Cinder: The Lunar Chronicles

Cinder: Book One in The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

Even in the future, the story begins with Once Upon a Time…. Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth's fate hinges on one girl. . . . Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future.

Switched: The Giveaway

SWITCHED… at birth:

When Wendy Everly was six years old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. Eleven years later, Wendy discovers her mother might have been right.  She’s not the person she’s always believed herself to be, and her whole life begins to unravel—all because of Finn Holmes.

Finn is a mysterious guy who always seems to be watching her.  Every encounter leaves her deeply shaken…though it has more to do with her fierce attraction to him than she’d ever admit.  But it isn’t long before he reveals the truth:  Wendy is a changeling who was switched at birth—and he’s come to take her home.   

Now Wendy’s about to journey to a magical world she never knew existed, one that’s both beautiful and frightening.  And where she must leave her old life behind to discover who she’s meant to become…

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