Best of 2012 Blog Hop Give@way!

Ahh, the end of the year is here and as always it is time to look back at the best of the year. So, here to celebrate is the Best of 2012 Blog Hop hosted by I Am A Reader, Not a Writer

For this giveaway I am offering up a choice of a indie author books that have been released this year that I enjoyed. All books will be gifted from Amazon, so as long as you are able to accept Kindle gifts, this giveaway is open to you!

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Review: Ever by Jessa Russo

Ever (Ever, #1)
by Jessa Russo
Published: October 1, 2012

Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Available: Amazon

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Ever’s love life has been on hold for the past two years. She’s secretly in love with her best friend Frankie, and he’s completely oblivious.

Of course, it doesn't help that he’s dead, and waking up to his ghost every day has made moving on nearly impossible.

Frustrated and desperate for something real, Ever finds herself falling for her hot new neighbor Toby. His relaxed confidence is irresistible, and not just Ever knows it. But falling for Toby comes with a price that throws Ever’s life into a whirlwind of chaos and drama. More than hearts are on the line, and more than Ever will suffer.

Some girls lose their hearts to love.

Some girls lose their minds.

Ever Van Ruysdael could lose her soul.

Review:
There were so many things I wanted to like about this book. The ghost of a childhood crush, a girl who was a devoted to his memory, a hot new neighbor. Combined they should have made an awesome read. Instead this story fell flat.

So, Frankie is dead and he's been haunting Ever for the past two years. Which was pretty much fine by her because she was fifteen (or was it fourteen) and madly in love with him when he died, although he never once thought of her that way. Having Frankie haunt her and her family is just peachy because this way she knows that she never has to move on and actually experience any healthy relationships. Then Toby moves in next door and he's hot enough that Ever realizes she's not dead like Frankie and maybe she should move on with her life.

I spent the entire novel rooting for Ever and Toby. Yes, Frankie appears first, and there's the whole unrequited love issue Ever has going on with him, but seriously? He's a 17 year old ghost with a pompadour and a cigarette behind his ear, who is actually pretty mean to Ever. There was a lot of Ever flip flopping between her love of Toby and Frankie. And really, it's pretty pathetic how quickly she does it. One minute she's making out with Toby the next she's realizing Frankie is her life (despite the fact he has none) and then it's back to Toby.

A few other characters appear and it's kind of hard to figure out what their motives really are. By the end I was confused and disappointed, and maybe even a little angry. Ever was set up to be a girl who had realized that she was wasting her life day dreaming over someone she could never have, who was determined to move on with her life, and then she just folds.

While the writing wasn't bad, this is not a series I am the least bit interested in continuing. I have a feeling that the next book will simply weaken Ever to the point of no return.

Winter Blast Blog Hop Continues!

So today on The Edible Bookshelf the Winter Book Blast is focusing on Young Adult books and includes a feature on Songbird and Lie to Me! I thought I'd share the book blurbs and covers along with the giveaway that I am hosting here on my blog. Check back on Dec 23rd and you can see a sneak peak of book 2 in A Touched Trilogy, Heal Me!

Songbird

There are defining moments in life when everything changes. For Dani Mays, it was the day she witnessed her father kill her brother. Now seventeen, she still hasn't put it behind her.

After Jace's death, she bounced between her alcoholic mother and foster homes until she found a permanent place. And a reason to want to stay: Reece Tyler. He's her best friend, yet Dani wants more from him.

Faced with losing Reece, Dani struggles to define his place in her life and escape the influence the memories of her brother's death have over her choices. Even as she weaves the pieces of her heart back together, the past becomes more than a memory when a former foster brother reappears and Dani begins receiving threatening calls.

Lie to Me (A Touched Trilogy, #1)

With a Truth Telling gift that has never worked, Phoebe Matlin accepted long ago that she was broken.

Then one simple lie changes everything and suddenly the whisper of liar is ripping through her. Some lies, though, cover darker truths than Phoebe ever imagined.

But knowing when someone is lying is the easy part. It's convincing everyone else that's the problem.

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Winter Book Blast Give@way Blog Hop!

Blog Hop time!

The Winter Book Blast Giveaway Hop is hosted by The Edible Bookshelf and a bunch of great authors are participating!

Starting December 15th - 23rd you can enter the Grand Prize Giveaway for a total of 18 books (a mix of YA and non-YA) and some individual blog giveaways. I am giving away ebook copies of my YA novels Songbird and Lie to Me.

To learn more about my novels Songbird and Lie to Me, as well as a sneak peek at book 2 in the Touched Trilogy, Heal Me come back on Dec. 19th and the 23rd!

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Review: Midnight City by J. Barton Mitchell

Midnight City (A Conquered Earth Novel)
J. Barton Mitchell
Published: October 30, 2012
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Available: Amazon

Synopsis:

Earth has been conquered by an alien race known as the Assembly. The human adult population is gone, having succumbed to the Tone---a powerful, telepathic super-signal broadcast across the planet that reduces them to a state of complete subservience. But the Tone has one critical flaw. It only affects the population once they reach their early twenties, which means that there is one group left to resist: Children.

Holt Hawkins is a bounty hunter, and his current target is Mira Toombs, an infamous treasure seeker with a price on her head. It’s not long before Holt bags his prey, but their instant connection isn’t something he bargained for. Neither is the Assembly ship that crash-lands near them shortly after. Venturing inside, Holt finds a young girl who remembers nothing except her name: Zoey.

As the three make their way to the cavernous metropolis of Midnight City, they encounter young freedom fighters, mutants, otherworldly artifacts, pirates, feuding alien armies, and the amazing powers that Zoey is beginning to exhibit. Powers that suggest she, as impossible as it seems, may just be the key to stopping the Assembly once and for all.

Midnight City is the breathtaking first book of the Conquered Earth series.

Review:

Midnight City is a complex tale that weaves together a post-apocalyptic story with aliens and magic. Barton does an amazing job of focusing on both world building and character development, not sacrificing one for the other.

Holt is a great main character. He has a depth to him that is continually exposed in increments through out the story. His personal experiences with the Tone have left him jaded, without turning him into a complete jerk. He comes across as very real with his fears and insecurities mixed with his strength and determination. Mira was also very interesting. She had a sassy, tough side to her, but it didn't define her. She also came across as caring and vulnerable without ever seeming weak. I loved how she was constantly planning and never felt like there was no way out of a bad situation.

The chemistry between Holt and Mira is obvious from the first meeting, but it doesn't consume the story. This is not a romance novel. It is a Science Fiction book with a bit of romance thrown in. And despite being a romance addict, I was perfectly all right with that.

The biggest issue I had with Midnight City was that the alien technology was pretty much exactly like War of the Worlds. It's extremely hard not to notice the sticking similarities, even if you're like me and have only seen the Tom Cruise movie.

Ultimately, what I love about this book and had me putting aside the WotW similarities is that Midnight City is a story for boys and girls. One of the biggest complaints I hear about YA books is that there aren't enough books that appeal to boys. Midnight City is one of those that I think has the potential to do so.

Review: Bad Hair Day by Carrie Harris

Bad Hair Day (Kate Grable, #2)
by Carrie Harris
Published: Nov. 13, 2012
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Available: Amazon

Synopsis:

Senior year is positively hair-raising.

Kate Grable is geeked out to shadow the county medical examiner as part of her school’s pre-med program. Except when he’s arrested for murder, she’s left with the bodies. And when Kate’s brother Jonah stumbles upon a dead gamer girl, she realizes that the zombie epidemic she cured last fall was only the beginning of the weirdness taking over her town. Someone’s murdering kids—something really hairy. And strong. Possibly with claws.

Is it werewolf awesomeness like Jonah and his dorktastic friends think? Kate’s supposed to be a butt-kicking zombie killing genius...but if she can’t figure out who’s behind the freakish attacks, the victims—or what’s left of them—are going to keep piling up.

It’s scary. It’s twisted. It’s sick. It’s high school.

Review:
Carrie Harris's sequel to Bad Taste in Boys is exactly what I expected from her. If you've ever visited her website you'll know what I mean. Bad Hair Day picks up soon after Bad Taste in Boys ends and Kate is still adjusting to all of the attention she's been getting ever since curing the "zombie" virus. In Bad Taste in Boys she got the boy she wanted and now she's struggling to deal with having a boyfriend who is really beyond her geeky social status while at the same time trying to save the world again.

I love that Kate's character doesn't change from one book to the other. Even though she's famous, she stays true to her science geek character and once the new mystery starts she is completely focused on solving it. There were some interesting scenes between Kate and her boyfriend Aaron. But he wasn't a big player in the story, mainly because Kate is too independent to fall into the whole "I love you too much to do anything without you" routine. In fact, Kate almost forgets about him while embroiled in her mystery.

I actually found the interactions between Kate and her brother, Jonah, to be the most entertaining. I don't have a brother, but can imagine how one would be so annoying, especially if he wore tights and played with a sword all day.

There is of course a certain amount of reality that needs to be checked before opening the book, even for a paranormal book. Kate's ability to perform some complex surgical procedures, the police department's willingness to divulge sensitive information to her, and the hospital's lack of knowledge that a high school senior is acting as medical examiner makes things convenient for the plot, but doesn't toe the line of reality.

For me this was a quick, fun read and really, once the line "You don't understand. I'm team Edward!" crossed the page, I was all in. This is a definite must read for anyone who's looking for something a quirky and fast paced.