Spotlight Tour: One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards (excerpt)

Sep28

Hey everyone! I’m excited to be on the spotlight tour for One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards (October 4, 2016 – Sourcebooks Fire)! This book looks epic and creepy and I’m so pumped to share an excerpt with you! First, here’s more about the book:

Damaged. Deceptive. Dangerous. Darling. Are they labels or a warning? The answer could cost Sera everything.

While on a mandatory senior field trip, a flash flood cuts off Sera and three classmates from their group with no way to call for help. But they’re not as alone as they thought…

Someone is stalking them through the woods. Someone who drugged them, stole their supplies, and wrote on their skin. Is it a judgement? A warning? If Sera doesn’t uncover the truth, it’s only a matter of time before the hunter finds her.

After years as a professional paper-pusher, NATALIE D. RICHARDS decided to trade in reality for a life writing YA fiction. She lives in Ohio (Go Bucks!) with her husband, three children, and a ridiculously furry dog named Yeti. This is her third novel. Visit her on Twitter @natdrichards or at nataliedrichards.com.

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Pre-order the book here!

Goodreads | Amazon

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Be sure to visit the author on her website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!

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And now, a quick note from the author!

Dear Reader,

It’s hard to believe One Was Lost is finally here. It feels weird to admit that I’ve been desperately looking forward to scaring you all and keeping you up way past your bedtimes, but it’s the truth. And now that it’s finally out in the world, I just can’t wait to hear what you all think! I mean, after you get some sleep of course. I’m not that impatient.

As a writer with my fourth book hitting the shelves, I can say each new release has its own special brand of excitement. Each story has elements that you cherish and characters you love. But One Was Lost wasn’t like any of my other books. Writing this book was a whole new ball game.

The truth behind One Was Lost is that my father died a few months before I started writing it. He was my inspiration for writing as a child and easily one of my closest friends throughout my life. Losing him was like having my foundation knocked sideways. My grief felt oceans deep and I was lost in the roll of every wave. It was brutally difficult.

For anyone who’s met me and knows what a class clown I am, I’ll confess 2015 was one of the least funny years of my life. Still, when I sat down to write One Was Lost, I knew I had something special. These characters were speaking to me like characters never had. This story was at a roiling boil in my head—but, could I really write it?

Doubt plagued me in those first days. Could I still remember how to get lost in a story? Could I get it right when I was still struggling so much? Most importantly, could I still be the writer I used to be?

The answer was quick and a little terrifying. No.

I couldn’t go back to the writer I was before. Losing someone incredibly important to you changes you. There is a new normal you must adjust to, and that new normal doesn’t fade away after the funeral is done and over.

My new normal proved to be a very powerful force in my writing life. One Was Lost forced me to face fears I might have danced around in other books. I had no choice but to dive more deeply than ever before. My new perspective had me spend more time than usual learning about these new characters. Trying to understand them. Hurting with them and fearing with them.

I didn’t just lose myself in One Was Lost, I drowned in it. I fell so deeply into this book that at times it was difficult to resurface to do normal, mundane not-lost-and-terrified-in-the-forest things. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more in love with characters in any of my stories, and I’m absolutely sure I’ve never been happier with the way a book has turned out.

It is my dearest hope that you’ll all get a little lost in this book too. Sometimes even the scariest things can bring out strength and goodness we never believed possible. And it is just that reason that One Was Lost is a book I’m so particularly proud of and excited to share with you.

Happy Reading!

Natalie

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And here’s the excerpt! Enjoy!

“Everyone, quiet. We need to move.” Mr. Walker’s voice is tight. Something’s wrong. But he’s halfway across, and the water is still below his knees. It’s moving quickly, but it seems OK. So why is Mr. Walker scanning the horizon like a soldier?

When he’s on the other side, he relaxes. “All right, let’s move. You’ll get to test those waterproof boots here. Emily, you first. Then Jude and right down the line.”

I stumble to the edge of the stream, rocks slipping and scattering under my boots. Jude’s next to me, earbuds in and his chin tipped up like we need a reminder that he’s better than us.

Emily begins to cross with Jude behind her. Then me and Lucas and the rest of the group after. I can’t help but think about what we must look like, this conga line of plastic-wrapped hikers splashing its way through the river.

Jude gasps ahead of me. Before I can ask, cold water gushes over the tops of my boots, then past my ankles. I stop when it reaches my knees. It’s higher. We’re not even halfway across.

Lucas splashes up from behind, rising over me. “Need me to carry you?”

I don’t dignify the question with a response. Behind me, Hayley and Madison shriek. I turn to see a glimpse of all three of them, Hayley on her butt in the water and Madison and Ms. Brighton rushing back for her. The girls are laughing hysterically.

“We’re almost halfway,” Lucas says, ignoring them. “Keep going.”

“Should we help?”

“They’re fine. Move.”

“Stop playing around back there! Get them up, Ms. Brighton,” Mr. Walker barks, then more softly to the ones climbing out, “Good job, Emily. Jude! Earbuds out!”

Mr. Walker looks downstream, and his expression hardens. “Sera, speed up now.”

I look up and wish I hadn’t. I don’t like the urgency in his tone any more than I like the rushing sound of water I hear off to the east.

“Is that rain?” I ask because I want it to be rain. Or hail. I want it to be anything other than what I already know it is.

Mr. Walker’s eyes flick upstream, his face going pale. “It’s flooding,” he admits.

My hope snaps like a rubber band. Fear billows out in its place, making me woozy.

“Sera, move!” Lucas says, prodding my backpack.

“I got it!” I snap, plowing ahead.

Hayley screams again behind us. They’re all three shouting. Something about a shoe. Someone’s stuck. Mr. Walker is yelling at Emily and Jude to back up, back up! And then the rain changes, the shower shifting into a driving roar with drops so hard they feel like sand spraying down. Everything is garbled. Muffled. Fear pushes the hair up on the nape of my neck.

We’re not going to get across.

“Go, Sera!”

Lucas. His voice right behind me, his wide hand just under my backpack, urging me forward. I stumble, spreading my arms wide for balance.

“Lucas, help!” Madison’s cry filters through the rain, but Mr. Walker shakes his head.

“No!” he bellows. “Move, Lucas! Ms. Brighton, pull Hayley and Madison back to shore!”

The water is moving quicker and higher, and my boots are sucking down into the mud at the bottom. The current pushes back at me. Steps turn into half steps. Quarter steps.

“Forget her shoes!” Mr. Walker screams. Someone’s coughing back there, but I don’t look, though I can hear their garbled cries. They’re struggling.

“I can’t get her!” Ms. Brighton’s voice is suddenly young and small, nothing like the serene woman from before. This is scared little kid voice. “Help! Hel—”

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And now for the giveaway! Ten winners will receive a copy of the book! To enter, fill out the Raffecopter below:

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Blog Tour: The Summer Before Forever by Melissa Chambers (Excerpt)

Sep4

Hey guys! I’m really excited to be on the blog tour for The Summer Before Forever by Melissa Chambers (August 22, 2016 – Entangled TEEN)! First, here’s more about the book! Then read on for an excerpt!

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Some boys break your heart. Others teach you how to heal it.

Chloe Stone’s life is a hot mess. Determined to stop being so freaking skittish, she packs up her quasi-famous best friend and heads to Florida. The goal? Complete the summer bucket list to end all bucket lists. The problem? Her hot soon-to-be stepbrother, Landon Jacobs.

Landon’s mom will throttle him if he even looks at his future stepsister the wrong way. Problem is, Chloe is everything he didn’t know he wanted, and that’s…inconvenient. Watching her tear it up on a karaoke stage, stand up to his asshole friend, and rock her first string bikini destroys his sanity.

But there’s more than their future family on the line. Landon is hiding something—something he knows will change how she feels about him—and she’s hiding something from him, too. And when the secrets come out, there’s a good chance neither will look at the other the same way again…

Goodreads | Amazon
Barnes & Noble | Entangled Teen Profile Page

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And now for the excerpt! Enjoy!

Chloe

It’s not like I didn’t know better. How many times has it been drilled into my brain—into the brain of every child over the age of three. Don’t get into a car with a stranger. But can the guy you’ve been melting for since the start of sophomore year really be considered a stranger…even if you never officially met him before?

I accidentally gun the gas as I squirm a little. Eight hours in a driver’s seat is hell on any behind.

It’s done. It’s over. In fact, I’m lucky. I got out of the nightmare with all my firsts still intact…well, most of them. Not quite the first kiss I have been waiting for these past sixteen years. But how juvenile is it anyway that a girl on the brink of seventeen would go un-kissed? Sweet sixteen and never been kissed—endearing. Seventeen and never been kissed—circus freak. At least that’s out of the way.

Jenna rouses in the passenger seat, yawning. “Oh my God. There’s the ocean.”

So it is, Captain Obvious. My Honda Civic starts its ascent up a fairly frightening looking bridge over an inlet.

“How long have I been asleep?”

“Couple of hours.”

She grabs her phone and squints at the screen. “Service. Thank God.”

I can’t help but smile. “What would Jenna Quigley do without social media for a day?”

“I have my fans to consider,” she says.

I give her a look.

“Kidding.”

Oh, but if only she was kidding. It’s amazing what placing eighth in a karaoke contest can do for one’s ego. Okay, so it was the most popular singing competition on any major network, but same difference.

She flips through her phone. “Oooh. I almost forgot. You’re going to love this one.”

Jenna and I are two of the most unlikely best friends in the history of friendships, but one thing that does bring us together is our shared love of music.

Unfortunately, our tastes couldn’t possibly be further apart on the spectrum.

“You’ve said that about the last five songs you played for me,” I say.

She holds up her free hand, the thumb on the other still scrolling. “I swear this is one of your people, not mine.”

She sets her phone down and stares at me with those huge green eyes as the synthpop sounds of St. Lucia fill my car.

I eye her. I wouldn’t call St. Lucia one of my people, but he definitely doesn’t suck. And as far as artists go that break the barrier between her pop roots and my alt rock ones, this is one I can live with. Besides, this song is highly danceable. My upper body moves to the beat without my permission.

She points at me. “See! I told you you’d love it.”

I let a smile through. “I don’t hate it. How did you get into him?”

“Mason,” she says.
And with that name, my shoulders still. Not that there’s anything wrong with Mason. He’s not the one who tried to force himself on me. No, that particular honor goes to his best friend, Trevor. I haven’t told Jenna yet. She’ll be crushed when she finds out—and then murderous. With the summer in front of us, I need to keep her living in blissful ignorance. If I don’t, she’ll blow up to Mason about it, and then it will become this huge deal around school.

As far as she’s concerned, Trevor and I kissed, and there was no spark.

“So this kid who’s going to be your stepbrother—what’s his name?” Jenna asks.

Here we go. I suppose I’ve put this off long enough. “I probably should mention… He’s not really a
kid.”

“Great. Is he some pervy preteen who’s going to be peeping through the crack of my bedroom door?”

“Not exactly.” I don’t know if he’s pervy or not, but I do know he’s not a preteen. He’s only a year older than us. It’s stupid, but I’m not ready for Jenna to find out yet. If I’d told her when I found out, she’d have found him on social media and wrapped him around her pinky before we even arrived. I just want a chance to get to know him at the same time rather than the two of them being old buds and best friends before we even arrive…or worse, dating.

I stare past the road out into the sparkling ocean spread in front of us. Secretly, I’m hoping he’s more like me than he is like her. I’ve never had a brother. God, I need that right now. A guy I can trust, who’s got my back. I have these ridiculous fantasies of this guy who immediately takes me under his protective wing as he kickboxes Trevor in the balls for what he tried to make me do…for what he swears we will do someday.

“So? What’s his name?” Jenna repeats.

“I don’t remember,” I lie.

She glares at me. “Well, what has your dad told you about him?”

I hit the blinker, and we turn toward our home for the next two months. “You think my dad and I have actual conversations?”

Jenna sits up and gasps, staring out the window. “No. Freaking. Way.”

A massive stone archway with sleek, aqua letters reading Sea Glass Cove welcomes us into a resort covered in pastel beach bungalows, a crazy big golf course, and a pool that looks like it was hijacked from Atlantis.

“Why didn’t you tell me your dad was loaded?” Jenna asks.

“He’s not,” I say. “This is his fiancée’s house.”

She snickers. “Score, Mr. Stone. Your dad must be hotter than I remember.”

I make a face. “Gross, Jenna.”

“Does he have a huge penis?” She pokes me in the side.

I swerve. “You’re going to get us killed, nasty.”

Jenna stabs a finger across my face. “265, there it is.”

I turn into the driveway of a two-story baby blue house. A black Jeep sits next to a shiny red Porsche SUV in front of my Honda. All this belongs to my future stepmother. Geez. Does my dad have a huge penis?

I open the door, and the salty sea air hits my face like the smell of chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven. Florida, even the humidity that’s so thick I think I might need an asthma inhaler, is my temporary escape for the summer.

I know I have to go back home to Cliff Ridge eventually, but when I do, the evil Trevor will be gone for college. As much as the next two months are going to win the award for most awkward daughter/dad summer ever, it’s better than the alternative of spending it back home looking over my shoulder.

I open the trunk and start gathering our bags.

“Cute,” Jenna says.

I glance at the house next door. “Yeah, you won’t find lavender houses in Cliff Ridge.”

“Not the house,” Jenna says out of the corner of her mouth.

“Let me get that.”

I look up to put a face with the unfamiliar male voice. Holy Zac Efron. Who in the… Oh no. I bet this is—

“Hey.” He grins at Jenna. “Which one of you is my new little sister?”

Jenna’s eyes go wide and she elbows me in the side. “Thank God not me.”

Great. Just…great.

He gives her a mischievous lift of an eyebrow, and then shifts his gaze to me. “Chloe?”

This guy has got the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen and short, shaggy, dark hair that falls all around his face in that totally messy and totally doesn’t care kind of way. Standing at least six feet tall, he towers over me, but I’m used to that. A light sprinkling of freckles decorates his tanned face, whereas I look like I’ve been hiding under a UV protected rock my whole life.

I scratch my eyebrow. “Yeah. Landon, right?”

“I thought you couldn’t remember his name,” Jenna mutters.

I cut my eyes at her in warning. He offers me his hand, and I take it.

“So you’re the new sister. You’re my first.” He gives the slightest hint of a smile and lets go of my hand. We watch as he wrangles our big roller bags out of the trunk and carries them both by the handles into the house.

Jenna rests an elbow on my shoulder. “Who needs to use the rollers when you’ve got muscles like that?”

She looks at me for a reaction, but I turn to the trunk to avoid her.

“So, some kid brother you got there,” she says. “What the hell, Chlo?”

I tug the rest of the bags out of the trunk and load us both down with them. “I said he wasn’t a kid…exactly.”

Jenna points to his backside as he climbs the front porch steps. “Not a kid, exactly? That is a full-fledged man. His boy parts grew up years ago.”

I anchor a canvas bag to her right shoulder. “Don’t be gross.”

I shut the trunk, and we make our way toward the house.

Landon holds the door open for us, and we scoot past him into the foyer. It’s weird stepping into this house that I guess will be my home in a way. My dad lives here after all, but it’s not really his…at least not yet. I glance around at all the white and aqua stuff, including a pristine white couch. God, I hope I don’t spill anything on that.

“This is a beautiful house,” I say.

“My mom’s a real estate agent. She’s into decorating houses and stuff.”

I glance around. “Is my dad here?”

“They just texted. They’ll be here in just a little while. They’re getting dinner stuff.” He smiles. “I think they’re going all out for your first night.”

I suppose that warms my heart a tad. Doesn’t really make up for my dad’s virtual complete absence from my life for the past five months, but who’s keeping score.

“Where will we be sleeping?” Jenna asks with innuendo.

“Upstairs. Follow me.”

As he leads us up the stairs Jenna points at his behind again and gives a thumb’s up. I give my throat a slice in warning, and it just eggs her on.

He hauls our suitcases into a pale yellow room. Jenna tosses her bags on one of the twin beds, and I sit down on the other.

“I’ll let you settle in. Nice to meet you, Jenna…Chloe.”

“Likewise,” Jenna says as he shuts the door to our room behind him.

I glare at her.

She flops onto the bed she claimed. “What’d I do?”

“We’re going to be here two months,” I say pointedly.

“So?”

“So if you hook up with him now and things go sour next week, it’s going to be a long two months.”

She sighs and sits up. “Point taken. Besides that, he’s just the first one we’ve seen. I bet there are a whole slew of them down at the beach. Let’s go.” She rips into her suitcase and comes up with a hot pink bikini.

“I want to wait for my dad to get home. You go.”

“That’s cool. I’ll wait with you.” She pulls her phone out of her pocket and flips through one of her seven or eight social media apps, I assume.

“Ah, look at my sweetie.”

“Who?” I ask. It could be anyone.

She glowers at me. “Mason.”

I nod. Of course. They hooked up the same night I had my fiasco with Trevor. Jenna never clarifies what she means by hooked up. I’m guessing it’s somewhere between a peck on the cheek and full-on sex.

I hang clothes in one of the two closets, and then pull out the bag with my shower stuff. As I go to set my shampoo down on the corner of the tub, I notice a bottle of men’s body wash. I realize that the door I assumed was to a linen closet is actually too big to be a closet door. I creep toward it and give it a little shove. It leads to another bedroom. A guy’s bedroom.

Gray, t-shirt material sheets pool on the unmade bed. A football poster decorates one wall, while another poster of Kate Upton in a bikini hangs on another. At least sixty or seventy hardbacks line the shelves of a bookcase. I check the door, and then take a few steps closer to read the titles—biographies, many of world leaders or prominent figures in history. I spot one sitting on his desk with a bookmark peeping out of it. Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy.

He’s redeemed for the Kate Upton poster.

A classic tennis racket in a wooden case sits on a shelf above his bed. A toddler-sized jersey hangs in a frame on one wall next to a shelf housing a single trophy. I come closer and read the plaque. The Mean Green Gorillas, Team Participant. I can’t help but giggle.

“I don’t come in your room and laugh at your stuff.”

I jump a mile and spin around.

Landon lounges against the doorframe.

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About the Author:
Melissa Chambers writes contemporary novels for young, new, and actual adults. A Nashville native, she spends her days working in the music industry and her nights tapping away at her keyboard. While she’s slightly obsessed with alt rock, she leaves the guitar playing to her husband and kid. She never misses a chance to play a tennis match, listen to an audiobook, or eat a bowl of ice cream. (Rocky road, please!) She’s a member of SCBWI and RWA including several local and online chapters thereof. She holds her B.S. in Communications from the University of Tennessee.

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Spotlight Tour: The Collectors’ Society by Heather Lyons (Excerpt)

Aug29

Hey everyone! I’m so excited to be on The Collectors’ Society (Heather Lyons) spotlight tour! Heather is an amazing, amazing author. She creates beautiful, vivid worlds, beloved characters and swoony boys! If you haven’t picked up one of her books, you MUST add them to your TBR! You won’t be disappointed!

For my Spotlight stop, I have an amazing excerpt from The Forgotten Mountain (Book 3) to share with you! Enjoy!

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THE FORGOTTEN MOUNTAIN — EXCERPT

“Chances are,” I say to Mary, “it will be as reported.”

She holds her weapon out, testing the weight. “They were given ten minutes to search the place.” A loud click sounds in the van as she pumps the chamber. “Even for those as skilled at retrievals like Finn and the A.D., ten minutes is nothing. Wendy asked the impossible of them.”

My partner’s name is a fist to my belly, but rather than leave me desperate to curl into a ball and weep uselessly about the unfairness of life and how I utterly failed Finn by going against my instincts whilst leaving him behind, it only solidifies the cold rage icing my veins.

Vengeance, the Caterpillar once told me, can be a delicious and fulfilling meal. Be certain it is what you want to eat, though, because as it travels through your body, it will seep into every last part of you. Your stomach may hurt afterward; you may even want to purge the contents. And yet, even if you can, traces of it will always remain.

My former Grand Advisor, whose head was struck from his body by the Queen of Hearts and whose body was fashioned into a gruesome clutch to sate twisted, vile needs, consistently proffered excel- lent advice. There were many I wished to wreak vengeance upon over the years, yet typically practiced restraint per his wise words.

He is dead. The man I am in love with is missing—believed to be dead by most. Mary’s love is also missing and assumed dead. Millions of souls have perished at the hands of villains through the destruction of catalysts. There has been too much devastation. Too much loss.

I am ready to eat that meal now.

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THE COLLECTORS’ SOCIETY SERIES BY HEATHER LYONS

THE COLLECTORS’ SOCIETY (The Collectors’ Society, #1)

From the author of the Fate series and The Deep End of the Sea comes a fantastical romantic adventure that has Alice tumbling down the strangest rabbit hole yet.

After years in Wonderland, Alice has returned to England as an adult, desperate to reclaim sanity and control over her life. An enigmatic gentleman with an intriguing job offer too tempting to resist changes her plans for a calm existence, though. Soon, she’s whisked to New York and initiated into the Collectors’ Society, a secret organization whose members confirm that famous stories are anything but straightforward and that what she knows about the world is only a fraction of the truth.

It’s there she discovers villains are afoot—ones who want to shelve the lives of countless beings. Assigned to work with the mysterious and alluring Finn, Alice and the rest of the Collectors’ Society race against a doomsday clock in order to prevent further destruction . . . but will they make it before all their endings are erased?

* This is the first book in the adult romance/fairy tale Collectors’ Society series.

Goodreads | Amazon US | Amazon UK
B&N | iBooks | Kobo

THE HIDDEN LIBRARY (The Collectors’ Society, #2)

Sometimes, the rabbit hole is deeper than expected . . .

Alice Reeve and Finn Van Brunt have tumbled into a life of secrets. Some secrets they share, such as their employment by the clandestine organization known as The Collectors’ Society. Other secrets they carry within them, fighting to keep buried the things that could change everything they think they know.

On the hunt for an elusive villain who is hell-bent on destroying legacies, Alice, Finn, and the rest of the Society are desperate to unravel the mysteries surrounding them. But the farther they spiral down this rabbit hole, the deeper they fall into secrets that will test their loyalties and pit them against enemies both new and old.

Secrets, they come to find, can reveal the deadliest of truths.

* This is the second book in the adult romance/fairy tale Collectors’ Society series.

Goodreads | Amazon US | Amazon UK
B&N | iBooks | Kobo

THE FORGOTTEN MOUNTAIN (The Collectors’ Society, #3)

After years spent in Wonderland, Alice Reeve learned the impossible was quite possible after all. She thought she left such fantastical realities behind when she finally returned to England.

Now Alice has become a member of the clandestine Collectors’ Society, and the impossible has found her again in the form of an elusive villain set on erasing entire worlds. As she and the rest of the Society race to bring this mysterious murderer to justice, the fight becomes painfully personal.

Lives are being lost. Loved ones are shattered or irrevocably altered. Each step closer Alice gets to the shadowy man she hunts, the more secrets she unravels, only to reveal chilling truths. If she wants to win this war and save millions of lives, Alice must once more embrace the impossible and make the unimaginable, imaginable.

Sometimes, the rabbit hole leads to terrifying places.

Goodreads | Amazon US | Amazon UK
B&N | Kobo

THE LOST CODEX (The Collectors’ Society, #4 / coming soon!)

Allies, once inseparable, splinter until they break apart.

An insidiousness carves its way through Wonderland, challenging the land’s very existence.

Battle lines will be drawn as pages, long languishing in darkness, are finally illuminated.

Swords will clash, blood will be spilled, and lives will be lost.

For what is written can still be erased.

Buy Links coming soon!

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About the Author:

Heather Lyons is known for writing epic, heartfelt love stories often with a fantastical twist. From Young Adult to New Adult to Adult novels—one commonality in all her books is the touching, and sometimes heart-wrenching, romance. In addition to writing, she’s also been an archaeologist and a teacher. She and her husband and children live in sunny Southern California and are currently working their way through every cupcakery she can find.

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Pre-release Blitz: The Flame Never Dies by Rachel Vincent (Excerpt + Giveaway)

Aug9

I am super excited to be a part of this pre-release blitz to help spread the word that THE FLAME NEVER DIES, the second book in Rachel Vincent’s The Stars Never Rise series, is releasing on August 16th!

For those that are already caught up on this series, the wait is (almost) finally over! For those that haven’t yet met Nina Kane or discovered the dark and dangerous world she lives in, there’s still time to catch up – and a really sweet deal (details below) that will make you want to move this series to the top of your reading pile!

Scroll down to learn more about THE FLAME NEVER DIES and THE STARS NEVER RISE, the author, Rachel Vincent, and to enter the giveaway for a chance to win a signed hardback set of these two amazing books!

And for even more peeks at the fab content being shared throughout the blitz – shareable quotation graphics, excerpts and an interview – look for other blogger participants now through August 15th on social media #TheFlameNeverDies.

AND…

THE STARS NEVER RISE goes on sale!

In anticipation of the upcoming release of THE FLAME NEVER DIES, the publisher is dropping the price for the eBook version of the first book in the series – THE STARS NEVER RISE! So if you haven’t yet discovered this series, now is the perfect time!

Just head over to your favorite online e-tailer to look for THE STARS NEVER RISE with its newly lowered price or visit one of these online stores – AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | iTUNES | GOOGLE PLAY | KOBO.

Please note that at the time of this post some stores may not yet have updated their sites to the promotional pricing. If they haven’t, be sure to check back for this awesome not-to-be-missed deal!

About THE FLAME NEVER DIES

Title & Series: THE FLAME NEVER DIES (The Stars Never Rise #2)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Release date: August 16, 2016
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 352
Formats: Hardcover, eBook

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For fans of Cassandra Clare and Richelle Mead comes the unputdownable sequel to The Stars Never Rise, a book Rachel Caine, author of the bestselling Morganville Vampires series, called “haunting, unsettling, and eerily beautiful.”

ONE SPARK WILL RISE. Nina Kane was born to be an exorcist. And since uncovering the horrifying truth—that the war against demons is far from over—seventeen-year-old Nina and her pregnant younger sister, Mellie, have been on the run, incinerating the remains of the demon horde as they go.

In the badlands, Nina, Mellie, and Finn, the fugitive and rogue exorcist who saved her life, find allies in a group of freedom fighters. They also face a new threat: Pandemonia, a city full of demons. But this fresh new hell is the least of Nina’s worries. The well of souls ran dry more than a century ago, drained by the demons secretly living among humans, and without a donor soul, Mellie’s child will die within hours of its birth.
Nina isn’t about to let that happen . . . even if it means she has to make the ultimate sacrifice.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | iTUNES | INDIEBOUND | GOOGLE PLAY | KOBO | GOODREADS

The Excerpt

Here’s a sneak peek from chapter two of THE FLAME NEVER DIES…

“What’s your name, sweetheart?” Ana asked the boy, and I realized there would be no teaching her caution where children were concerned. She had spent five years as a grade-school teacher.

“Tobias.” The boy’s voice was soft and hoarse, as if he’d been crying. His gaze slid from Anabelle to me, and I decided the glazed look in his eyes was from shock.

He reminded me of the kindergartners I’d spent my service hour with every day of my senior year, until the Church had declared me a cancerous wart on mankind’s collective hind end. Tobias could have been any kid in my class, terrified and traumatically orphaned.

We couldn’t leave him alone in the badlands. Yet ours was no life for a kid.

The irony in that thought hit home when my sister waddled past me, one hand on her huge belly. “Melanie,” I called, but she waved off my warning. When I glanced at Finn, he nodded to give me the all clear, the rifle still aimed at the ground. He’d inspected the car from the outside and squatted to peer beneath it, and had found no immediate danger.

Still, Mellie was too pregnant to fight or to flee from sudden danger, so I followed her, ready to pull her out of the path of evil should a demon burst from the bloody car.

“Are you okay, Tobias?” my sister asked, kneeling in front of the child with Anabelle’s help.

For a moment he only stared at her, studying her pale skin and even paler hair. Finally he nodded, his gaze fixated on her stomach, while I tried to calculate the mileage his family must have traveled in that doomed blue car. “You got a baby in there?”

Melanie laughed, and I marveled at the fact that she could find joy where the rest of us saw only tragedy and hardship. “Yes. And I like your name, Tobias.” She laid one hand on her stomach. “Maybe I’ll borrow it if this little one’s a boy.”

Assuming it lived.

Melanie was a tireless optimist, not blind to the dangers of the world, exactly, but not quite concerned enough about them. She refused to think about the overwhelming odds against her child’s survival, and neither she nor Ana had even glanced at the carnage inside that blue car.

And I hadn’t heard her mention Adam, the ill-fated father of her child, in weeks.

Reese pulled the SUV to a stop beside our truck, right in the middle of the road, and the other half of our group poured out of the vehicle. “What the hell?” Footsteps crunched in the dirt behind me, and then Reese and Grayson stopped at my side. She carried a plastic jug and he had a hose wrapped around his massive left arm.

“Looks like the parents are dead in the front seat,” I whispered. “Not sure what happened yet, but Finn hasn’t found any immediate threat.”

“Poor thing!” Grayson cried.

Devi rolled her eyes and scuffed her boot in the dirt on the side of the road. “What the hell are we supposed to do with him?”

“We can’t leave him here.” Maddock threaded his arm through hers, frowning as he watched the little boy. “It’s a miracle he’s still alive. He must not have been here long.”

“We’re not even going to think about taking him with us until we know what killed his parents.” Devi circled the car toward the driver’s side and used one hand to shield the sun from her face while she bent to peer through the window. When she stood a second later, she looked sick. “Nothin’ but blood.”

While the rest of us took a closer look at the car, Grayson, Ana, and Mellie lured Tobias toward the cargo truck with promises of water and chocolate from a box of sweets that had been intended for the general store in New Temperance.

As Devi and Finn had said, the front windows were too caked with blood to show anything at all, and through the rear windshield we could see little more than the outlines of two bodies sitting in the front seats. The trunk door stood open a couple of inches, and when I lifted it, I saw that the narrow center seat had been folded down, creating a small path into the trunk from the backseat of the car. A path just wide enough for a six-year-old.

My stomach twisted at the thought of what Tobias must have witnessed. How could any kid see that much carnage without being psychologically destroyed?

When the child was out of sight behind the cargo truck, Maddock opened the driver’s door while Finn aimed his rifle at the interior just in case. Nothing jumped out at us, but after one glance inside I gasped and stepped back. Finn’s jaw tightened, and even Devi covered her mouth in horror.

The man and woman, still buckled into the front seats of the car, were drenched in blood fresh enough to glisten in the afternoon sunlight. The dashboard, windows, windshield, and floorboard had all been heavily splattered with what could only have been an arterial spray.

Yet even through all the gore, two things were clear.

First, the man and woman in the blue car were not Tobias’s biological parents—their skin was as pale as mine, even accounting for the pallor of recent death. And second, based on the blood and bits of flesh caking their right hands, the couple’s wounds appeared to be self-inflicted.

The man and woman had simply pulled onto the side of the road, then ripped out their own throats.

About Rachel Vincent

Rachel Vincent is a former English teacher and an eager champion of the Oxford comma. She shares her home in Oklahoma with two cats, two teenagers, and her husband, who’s been her # 1 fan from the start. Rachel is older than she looks and younger than she feels, and she remains convinced that writing about the things that scare her is the cheapest form of therapy—but social media is a close second.

WEBSITE | BLOG | TWITTER | TUMBLR | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS

About THE STARS NEVER RISE

Title & Series: THE STARS NEVER RISE (The Stars Never Rise #1)
Author: Rachel Vincent
Release date: June 9, 2015
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 368
Formats: Hardcover, paperback, eBook***

***See above for details on the promotional pricing of the eBook

~*~*~*~

Sixteen-year-old Nina Kane should be worrying about her immortal soul, but she’s too busy trying to actually survive. Her town’s population has been decimated by soul-consuming demons, and souls are in short supply. Watching over her younger sister, Mellie, and scraping together food and money are all that matters. The two of them are a family. They gave up on their deadbeat mom a long time ago.

When Nina discovers that Mellie is keeping a secret that threatens their very existence, she’ll do anything to protect her. Because in New Temperance, sins are prosecuted as crimes by the brutal Church and its army of black-robed exorcists. And Mellie’s sin has put her in serious trouble.

To keep them both alive, Nina will need to trust Finn, a fugitive with deep green eyes who has already saved her life once and who might just be an exorcist. But what kind of exorcist wears a hoodie?

Wanted by the Church and hunted by dark forces, Nina knows she can’t survive on her own. She needs Finn and his group of rogue friends just as much as they need her.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | iTUNES | INDIEBOUND | GOOGLE PLAY | KOBO | GOODREADS

The Giveaway

Courtesy of the author, there is a blitz-wide giveaway for…

ONE (1) winner will receive a SIGNED hardback set of THE STARS NEVER RISE + THE FLAME NEVER DIES

Giveaway is US only. Must be 13 or older to enter. Giveaway ends on August 14th at 11:59 PM Pacific.

Enter in the Rafflecopter below…

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday Street Team: All the Feels by Danika Stone (Excerpt + Giveaway)

Jun26

Sunday Street Team is hosted by Nori @ ReadWriteLove28

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Hey everyone! Today, I have an excerpt to share with you from All the Feels by Danika Stone! Plus, we have a great giveaway for you to enter! First, here’s more about the book!

College freshman Liv is more than just a fangirl: The Starveil movies are her life… So, when her favorite character, Captain Matt Spartan, is killed off at the end of the last movie, Liv Just. Can’t. Deal.

Tired of sitting in her room sobbing, Liv decides to launch an online campaign to bring her beloved hero back to life. With the help of her best friend, Xander, actor and steampunk cosplayer extraordinaire, she creates #SpartanSurvived, a campaign to ignite the fandom. But as her online life succeeds beyond her wildest dreams, Liv is forced to balance that with the pressures of school, her mother’s disapproval, and her (mostly nonexistent and entirely traumatic) romantic life. A trip to DragonCon with Xander might be exactly what she needs to figure out what she really wants.

Goodreads | Amazon
The Book Depository | IndieBound

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And now for the excerpt! Enjoy!

Excerpt #2: From All the Feels, Chapter 2

Spartan Forum, 2:15 a.m.
New thread, topic: Spartan Rescue Mission
@SpartanSurvived:

ATTN: All members of the Starveil Rebellion. Many of you have heard that Captain Matt Spartan, commander of the Star Freighter Elysium, has been reported missing in action. Surveillance footage from the final escape pod shows the Elysium being destroyed, but in the last hours, there have been multiple reports of an unidentified transceiver messaging in the Omega Quadrant.

We need you, soldiers. Spartan needs you. Look for evidence. Find reports, word-of-mouth testimony, footage if you can. If we have any hope of finding Spartan alive, it will come down to your ingenuity and determination. This rescue message must spread far and wide. Post your findings on all fandom platforms using the hashtag: #SpartanSurvived

THIS IS YOUR CALL TO ACTION.

@SpartanSurvived

~*~*~

Liv chewed her lower lip, rereading the text once and again. Leaving a post like this on one of the busiest Starveil forums was a call to arms. It was so outrageous – so arrogant – she couldn’t doubt the potential for ridicule. Trolls loved tearing apart things like this.

And if they decided to start flaming her post, they’d burn her idea down to the ground. But if she didn’t post it, she’d never know.

Her fingers drummed on the armrest. Post or not. That was the big question.

Liv lifted her phone, scrolling through her texts. There was one from Joanne. It had arrived while she was out with Xander.

@Joeswoes: So upset over that stupid ending, Liv. How do you get over losing a character you love? Spartan’s REAL to me. He’s my baby, you know? :(

Liv did know. He was her baby too. He was everyone’s! And by killing the character off they’d wounded an entire community of fans. She reread Joe’s text, her finger hovering over reply for a long moment.

She set the phone down again.

Her gaze darted back to the computer screen. THIS IS YOUR CALL TO ACTION. If she posted this, it needed to be real. She needed people to believe Spartan could come back. They needed to trust that he’d made it out of the ship. It couldn’t just be fangirl to fangirl, writing Starveil AU’s that never really happened. This would be the guerrilla warfare of character ships. The fans would have to reweave the details they had into a new explanation of those last seconds of film. They’d take no prisoners, leave no wounded fans behind. But, as in any war, that meant the intel behind the revolution had to stay secret for as long as possible.

Fandom had to believe.

Liv released her breath, heart beating in her temple. It’s up to you to make your happy ending.

She hit post.

~*~*~

About the Author:

Danika Stone is an author, artist, and educator who discovered a passion for writing fiction while in the throes of her Masters thesis. A self-declared bibliophile, Danika now writes novels for both adults (The Intaglio Series and Ctrl Z) and teens (All the Feels). When not writing, Danika can be found hiking in the Rockies, planning grand adventures, and spending far too much time online. She lives with her husband, three sons, and a houseful of imaginary characters in a windy corner of Alberta, Canada.

Ms. Stone is represented by Morty Mint of Mint Literary Agency.

Website | Twitter

~*~*~

And now for the giveaway! To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: How to Disappear by Ann Redisch Stampler (Excerpt & Giveaway)

Jun25

Hey everyone! I’m really excited to be on the blog tour for How to Disappear by Ann Redisch (Simon Pulse, June 14, 2016). This book sounds AMAZING and I can’t wait to read it!!

Check out the excerpt below and don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

This electric cross-country thriller follows the game of cat and mouse between a girl on the run from a murder she witnessed—or committed?—and the boy who’s sent to kill her.

Nicolette Holland is the girl everyone likes. Up for adventure. Loyal to a fault. And she’s pretty sure she can get away with anything…until a young woman is brutally murdered in the woods near Nicolette’s house. Which is why she has to disappear.

Jack Manx has always been the stand-up guy with the killer last name. But straight A’s and athletic trophies can’t make people forget that his father was a hit man and his brother is doing time for armed assault. Just when Jack is about to graduate from his Las Vegas high school and head east for college, his brother pulls him into the family business with inescapable instructions: find this ruthless Nicolette Holland and get rid of her. Or else Jack and everyone he loves will pay the price.

As Nicolette and Jack race to outsmart each other, tensions—and attractions—run high. Told in alternating voices, this tightly plotted mystery and tense love story challenges our assumptions about right and wrong, guilt and innocence, truth and lies.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | IndieBound | Goodreads

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Excerpt: Deleted Scene B

Author Note: This scene was an early attempt to capture Jack’s pure anger, expressed directly and through sarcasm, at the fact that his brother, Don, has blackmailed him to track and eliminate a girl who, in an earlier version of the story, was thought to have killed a Russian named Petrov, an orderly at the institution where she ended up.

***

Jack
I am trying to work up some enthusiasm for a gap year.

Because who the hell wants to go to college when he could ride around the country in his lowlife brother’s shitmobile Thunderbird, looking for a cute girl who cuts people’s throats?

Because my lowlife brother is in a corner, back to the wall, dead if he doesn’t do some thug he crossed a favor.

I want to punch him in the face and go “What the hell? Again? Why do you keep doing this?”

But I don’t want him dead.

Bringing us back to the killer girl, the crazy one who killed Ivan Petrov. I don’t care how weasly the guy was, he was becoming a nurse. Besides, I don’t like blood.

And my dad, the king of spilling blood, was fine with that.

Damn Don. Damn stupid Don.

I wake up and I’m sitting up in bed, skin cold to the touch but sweating. I am pummeled with memories I’d rather not have.

~*~*~*~

And now for the giveaway! ONE (1) winner will receive a $50.00 gift certificate for The Book Depository, Signed HOW TO DISAPPEAR bookmarks + a Nicolette’s disguise inspired Smashbox makeup kit. ***Giveaway is INTERNATIONAL***

To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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About the Author:

Ann Redisch Stampler is the author of the young adult novels Afterparty and Where It Began as well as half a dozen picture books. Her work has garnered an Aesop accolade, the National Jewish Book Award, Sydney Taylor honors, the Middle East Book Award, and Bank Street Best Books of the Year mentions. How to Disappear (Simon Pulse, 2016), her first young adult thriller, will be released in June. Ann lives in Los Angeles, California, with her husband Rick.

WEBSITE | BLOG | TWITTER
FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | GOODREADS

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Tour Schedule

Tuesday, June 14th:
Book Briefs – Review
BookHounds YA – Author Interview

Wednesday, June 15th:
Ryley Reads – Review
Fiktshun – Review
Becky on Books – Excerpt

Thursday, June 16th:
Just Commonly – Review
Emily Reads Everything – Review

Friday, June 17th:
Such a Novel Idea – Review
Curling Up With A Good Book – Author Interview

Saturday, June 18th:
Here’s to Happy Endings – Review
My So-Called Book Reviews – Author Interview

Sunday, June 19th:
A Gingerly Review – Spotlight
Book Whales – Excerpt

Monday, June 20th:
A Dream Within A Dream – Review
Jessabella Reads – Character Interview

Tuesday, June 21st:
Owl Always Be Reading – Review
The Cover Contessa – Character Interview

Wednesday, June 22nd:
Dani Reviews Things – Author Interview
Fishing for Books – Review

Thursday, June 23rd:
Once Upon a Twilight – Author Interview
Classy Cat Books – Review

Friday, June 24th:
Star-Crossed Book Blog – Review
Lilians Book Stuff – Author Interview

Saturday, June 25th:
Pandora’s Books – Excerpt
Reese’s Reviews – Review

Sunday, June 26th:
The Phantom Paragrapher – Review
In a Bookish World – Excerpt

Monday, June 27th:
Movies, Shows & Books – Review
Wishful Endings – Character Interview
A Bookish Escape – Review

Spotlight Post: Bloodcraft by Amalie Howard (Excerpt)

Jun7

Hey everyone! Today, I’m excited to share with you an excerpt from Amalie Howard’s Bloodcraft, book two in the Cruentus Curse duology. I absolutely adore Amalie! She’s an amazing writer and Bloodcraft was an amazing book! First, here’s more about the book:

*2016 Silver IPPY Winner in YA Fiction!

All magic has its price, and no one knows that better than Victoria Warrick. Gifted with a centuries-old blood curse, Tori has finally learned to master her blood’s demands and has emerged triumphant with Christian Devereux, a vampire overlord, at her side.

But the worst is yet to come …

In the infamous City of Lights, home to both the Witch Clans and the Vampire Council, Tori enrolls at the exclusive Belles Fontaines school in Paris, where she is faced with a devastating choice: choose Christian and be an outcast, or choose the coven and secure her place with the witches.

When the fate of the supernatural world is targeted by a sinister new threat, Christian and Victoria must unite their two warring species to defeat it. Their bond will be tested, twisted, and sorely weakened, and Tori will find herself in uncharted territory—a dangerous place to be when her blood’s magic has its own dark agenda.

But to save them all, she may have no choice but to invoke its deadly power.

*NOTE: Bloodcraft is Upper YA / New Adult (for mature content–violence, sensuality & language)

Amazon | Kobo | B&N

And now here’s the excerpt! Enjoy!

From Chapter Four of Bloodcraft – “The Art of War”

Lucian flinched, wondering why she was bringing up painful, ancient memories. She had chosen Christian over him, even before he had made her a vampire. Lucian often wondered if he had been the one to petition the Council to make her a vampire instead of Christian, whether she’d have accepted him as readily as she had Christian. He forced his jealousy back—she, like everyone else, had fallen for his brother first.
“You chose him,” he said flatly.

Lena sighed. “Yes. I chose him then, but I’m with you now. Regardless, I want you to know if I have to make the same choice between both of you now, I would choose you, Lucian. I stay here with you because I want to be with you. For no other reason. Do you understand that?” Lucian nodded, shaken by the feeling in her voice. He knew that she put up with his violent mood swings and his cruelty—because she did care for him in some way. Lena continued. “I meant what I said earlier. I’ll do whatever it takes to ensure that the Council doesn’t execute a death order on your head. If I have to beg for Christian’s help, I will. If I have to crawl, I will, no holds barred. And I don’t give a damn what you do to me because of your stupid pride, do you hear me?”

He crossed the room then and kissed Lena’s neck in exactly the same spot he’d mauled so savagely before. “I’m sorry,” he said. “And I understand. Forgive me?”

She nodded, standing in his embrace for a few minutes before pulling away. “We need to talk.”

“I thought we just did,” he said, walking over to pour himself some cognac. “Drink?” She ignored the invitation. “That was personal. This is different. Lucian, the next Council meeting is in a few weeks. You need to speak with Christian before then. He won’t listen unless you do it.”

“He wants me to beg.” It was not a question. Lucian’s voice was tight.

“No, he knows how you feel about saving people who don’t need saving, remember?”
She softened her next words, as if noticing the sudden shift in his mood. “He needs you to ask him, Lucian. That’s all. No more, no less. Don’t make it more than it is.”

Lucian jerked a hand through his cropped blond hair. She stared at him and he sighed. “Fine,” he said, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. “I’ll talk to him.”

As he said the words, he saw the relief cross her face, and for the first time, felt a root of worry take hold. It took a lot to make Lena anxious. If the Council moved faster than either of them anticipated, his house of cards would be quick to come tumbling down. He’d speak to Christian and put the rest of his plan into place.

So far, if he was successful in instigating a coup against the leadership of the Council, he’d have the allegiance of three of the seven vampire Houses. He could call in blood favors with one more, which left only two to deal with, House Arcan and House Vesily, both of which were formidable opponents. To go up against them would be difficult, but not impossible. If he secured Kristos’s witch, that would bring an added advantage and the benefit of surprise. He’d have to move quickly, and if anything, Lena’s sense of urgency demanded it. Lucian smiled grimly.He had a lot to do in not a whole lot of time, but at least he planned to go down swinging.

He’d give them the showdown of their lives.

~*~*~*~

Don’t forget to check out Amalie’s other books!

The Cruentus Curse includes Bloodspell (picked as a Seventeen Magazine Beach Read) and Bloodcraft (which she wrote specifically for her wonderful readers!

The Riven Chronicles includes The Almost Girl and The Fallen Prince (newly released in April)

~*~*~*~

About the Author:

AMALIE HOWARD grew up on a small Caribbean island where she spent most of her childhood with her nose buried in a book or being a tomboy running around barefoot, shimmying up mango trees and dreaming of adventure. 25 countries, surfing with sharks and several tattoos later, she has traded in bungee jumping in China for writing the adventures she imagines instead. She isn’t entirely convinced which takes more guts.

She is the award-winning author of several young adult novels critically acclaimed by Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, VOYA, and Booklist, including Waterfell, The Almost Girl, and Alpha Goddess, a Spring 2014 Kid’s INDIE NEXT title. Her debut novel, Bloodspell, was a #1 Amazon bestseller, and the sequel, Bloodcraft, was a national silver IPPY medalist. She is also the co-author of the adult historical romance series, THE LORDS OF ESSEX. As an author of color and a proud supporter of diversity in fiction, her articles on multicultural fiction have appeared in The Portland Book Review and on the popular Diversity in YA blog. She currently resides in Colorado with her husband and three children.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Amalie Howard Goodreads

Blog Tour: The Fallen Prince by Amalie Howard (Excerpt + Giveaway)

May31

We hope you’re ready to be transported by Amalie Howard’s THE FALLEN PRINCE, a Young Adult Science Fiction novel and the sequel to THE ALMOST GIRL! Publishers Weekly calls the first in the series “a high-octane thriller.” Grab your copy of this amazing novel today!

Riven has fought for a hard-won peace in her world, and has come to shaky terms with who and what she is—a human with cyborg DNA. Now that the rightful ruler of Neospes has been reinstated, Riven is on the hunt for her father in the Otherworld to bring him to justice for his crimes against her people.

But when she receives an unwelcome visit from two former allies, she knows that trouble is brewing once again in Neospes. The army has been decimated and there are precious few left to fight this mysterious new threat.
To muster a first line of defense, her people need help from the one person Riven loathes most—her father. But what he wants in return is her complete surrender.

And now Riven must choose: save Neospes or save herself.

~*~*~

Praise for THE FALLEN PRINCE:

“[P]acked with action . . . Imagery is the highlight of this book.” — VOYA

“A parallel-dimension–jumping cyborg soldier must make questionable alliances to save her country from an existential threat in this sequel to The Almost Girl. [O]ffers a solid conclusion.” — Kirkus Reviews

“This sequel to The Almost Girl was everything I wanted: non-stop action, smart science, new and intriguing characters, and a satisfying romance. I couldn’t put it down!” — Page Morgan, author of The Beautiful and the Cursed

“[T]he next step in a dark, clever and thrilling scorched-earth, world-hopping adventure.” — Jet Black Ink

~*~*~

Goodreads | Amazon | Books-A-Million
Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound

~*~*~*~

And now for the excerpt! Enjoy!

Cale and I used to dare each other to go outside the dome as kids, knowing we’d get into trouble if we were ever caught. Leaving the safety zone had been illicit and thrilling. It had been our secret spot, a tunnel in the bedrock carved by a long-dried underground stream when Neospes had fresh running water. I stare at the old access hole, now filled with titanium, as the memories rush back.

It was the first time I’d seen a Reptile. Cale had just turned eleven. Thinking himself braver than ever, he’d dared me to accompany him on an early morning adventure beyond the dome. As much as I hadn’t wanted to go, he was my responsibility.

“Come on, Cale. This is far enough. We need to get back.” We’d turned around only to see a horse standing between our secret exit and us. Only, it wasn’t a horse.

“What is that?” Cale had whispered. 

“Cale, get behind me.” 

“No way.” He’d stamped his foot. “I want to see.” 

Steam had blown from the creature’s distended nostrils, and then it had charged. I remember the rotting smell and the chunks of flesh hanging off its wired frame. It was also the first Reptile I’d ever killed.

Cale became obsessed with Reptiles after that. He would lure and catch smaller ones, keeping them in cages. He studied the creatures, torturing them—ripping them apart and piecing them back together. I’d always thought his morbid fascination was odd, but, in hindsight, it was understandable. After all, he was a clone with a failing body, searching for a way to reconstruct himself.

But Cale is dead. He’d died months ago in the Outers.

~*~*~*~

And don’t miss the first book in The Riven Chronicles Series!

Seventeen-year-old Riven comes from a world parallel to Earth, a world that has been ravaged by a devastating android war. As a Legion General, she is the right hand of Prince Cale, the young Prince of Neospes. In her world, she’s had everything: rank, responsibility, and respect. But when Prince Cale sends her away to rescue his long-lost brother, Caden, who has been spirited to modern day Earth, Riven finds herself in uncharted territory.

Armed with the mindset of a soldier and racing against time to bring Caden home, Riven must learn how to blend in as a girl in a realm that is the opposite of all she’s ever known. Will she be able to find the strength to defy her very nature? Or will she become the monstrous soldier she was designed to be?

Goodreads | SKYHORSE PUBLISHING Website

~*~*~*~

About the Author:

AMALIE HOWARD grew up on a small Caribbean island where she spent most of her childhood with her nose buried in a book or being a tomboy running around barefoot, shimmying up mango trees and dreaming of adventure. 25 countries, surfing with sharks and several tattoos later, she has traded in bungee jumping in China for writing the adventures she imagines instead. She isn’t entirely convinced which takes more guts.

She is the award-winning author of several young adult novels critically acclaimed by Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, VOYA, and Booklist, including Waterfell, The Almost Girl, and Alpha Goddess, a Spring 2014 Kid’s INDIE NEXT title. Her debut novel, Bloodspell, was a #1 Amazon bestseller, and the sequel, Bloodcraft, was a national silver IPPY medalist. She is also the co-author of the adult historical romance series, THE LORDS OF ESSEX. As an author of color and a proud supporter of diversity in fiction, her articles on multicultural fiction have appeared in The Portland Book Review and on the popular Diversity in YA blog. She currently resides in Colorado with her husband and three children.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Amalie Howard Goodreads | THE FALLEN PRINCE Goodreads

~*~*~*~

And now for the giveaway! To enter, fill out the Rafflectoper below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Amalie Howard’s THE FALLEN PRINCE – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:

May 30^th

Movies, Shows & Books – Excerpt

My YA NA Book Obsession – Review & Excerpt

Adventures in Writing – Excerpt

The LitBuzz – Review

Deluged with Books Cafe – Excerpt

WTF Are You Reading? – Review & Excerpt

Rambling Reads – Excerpt

AC Book Blog – Excerpt

Cynthia Bloggs – Excerpt

May 31^st

Dazzled by Books – Excerpt

Comic Book Love – Review

Pandora’s Books – Excerpt

Have Words Will Scribble – Review & Excerpt

Vagabonda Reads – Excerpt

Hannah’s Words – Review & Excerpt

The Romance Reviews – Excerpt

Maari Loves Her Indies – Excerpt

June 1^st

Socially Awkward Book Nerd – Excerpt

Escape Inside the Pages – Review & Excerpt

SnoopyDoo’s Book Reviews – Excerpt

Penny For My Thoughts – Review

Blissfully bookerized – Excerpt

Amy’s Review Obsession – Review

Bookish Things & More – Excerpt

Readers Live A Thousand Lives – Excerpt

June 2^nd

Book it – Review & Excerpt

Reading Between the Wines Book Club – Excerpt

Books Need TLC – Review & Excerpt

BookCrushin – Excerpt

Roxy’s Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Romance Book Nerd – Excerpt

Mes Livres – Review & Excerpt

TMBA Corbett Tries to Write – Excerpt

The Rest Is Still Unwritten – Review & Excerpt

June 3^rd

The book slayer – Review & Excerpt

Fishing for Books – Excerpt

The Recipe Fairy – Review & Excerpt

YA Book Divas – Excerpt

2 girls who love books – Excerpt

Book Lovers Life – Excerpt

Only One More Page – Excerpt

Teen Readers’ Diary – Excerpt

June 4^th

Mama Reads Hazel Sleeps – Review & Excerpt

Hart’s Romance Pulse – Excerpt

The Cover Contessa – Review & Excerpt

Evermore Books – Excerpt

The A P Book Club – Review & Excerpt

The Travelogue of a book addict – The Book Drealms – Excerpt

City of Books – Review & Excerpt

RhiReading – Excerpt

Danielle’s Domain – Excerpt

Blog Tour: Everland by Wendy Spinale (Excerpt + Giveaway)

May10

Hey guys! I’m really excited to be on the blog tour for Everland by Wendy Spinale (May 10, 2016 – Scholastic Press)! This book sounds amazing and I’m dying to read it! Today, I have an excerpt to share with you, plus an amazing giveaway! First, here’s more about the book:

Forget the story of Peter Pan you know. Because in Everland, the only way to grow up is to survive.

London has been destroyed in a blitz of bombs and disease. The only ones who have survived are children, among them Gwen Darling and her siblings, Joanna and Mikey. They spend their nights scavenging and their days avoiding the ruthless Marauders — the German Army led by Captain Hanz Otto Oswald Kretschmer.

Unsure if the virus has spread past England’s borders but desperate to leave, Captain Hook hunts for a cure, which he thinks can be found in one of the survivors. He and his Marauders stalk the streets snatching children for experimentation. None ever return. Until the day they grab Joanna. As Gwen sets out to save her, she meets a mysterious boy named Pete. Pete offers the assistance of his gang of Lost Boys and the fierce sharpshooter Bella, who have all been living in a city hidden underground. But in a place where help has a steep price and every promise is bound by blood, it will cost Gwen. And are she, Pete, the Lost Boys, and Bella enough to outsmart Captain Hook?

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Goodreads

And now for the excerpt. Enjoy!

His face draws close to mine.

“You don’t plan to march into the city and rescue your sister with a couple of dull daggers, do you?”

“I’ll find another weapon on the way.” I grab for my pack, but he brushes my hand aside.

“Do you really believe you and your kid brother can get her back all by yourself? It’s only a matter of time before you’re caught, too.” Pete hands me my bag. “Most survivors have learned the two rules to staying alive. Number one: Don’t leave behind a footprint. Bella and I stick to the rooftops. Others, those that are skilled with weapons and can run fast . . .”

“And have stomachs of steel,” Bella interjects, wrinkling her nose.

“Those Scavengers utilize the sewage systems,” Pete finishes.

“There are other people?” Mikey asks, tugging on Pete’s coattail.

“Of course there are others,” Bella says with exasperation in her voice. “Lots of them. All kids, obviously. You don’t think the four of us are the only ones left in England, do you?”

“Where are the other kids?” Mikey asks, his expression wild with curiosity.

Pete beckons us to the window. Mikey follows and, with reluctance, I join them. In the distance, the crumbledbuildings of Everland rise toward the sky like steel, concrete, and brick tombstones. The navy blue hues of night have faded into lavender as the sun on the horizon chases away what is left of the evening stars. Only two twinkling points remain. He points to the west.

“Second to the right,” he says. “Just below it.”

“You’re telling me there are children hiding in Everland?” I ask in disbelief.

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Copyright © 2016 by Wendy Spinale
All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. scholastic, scholastic press, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.

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And now for the giveaway! Three winners will receive a finished copy of EVERLAND. Giveaway US Only. To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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About the Author:

I must admit, I have lived an extraordinary life and will forever be grateful for the opportunities I have had.

I was the middle of three kids, my older brother being deaf for as far back as I can remember. At the time, I didn’t realize how much that would later impact my life. I was a sign language interpreter for a short time (although I’m extremely rusty now), taught my kids to sign as infants, and now am using that experience in my current manuscript.

During college I was living in southern California working for Disneyland as a Cast Member in the Entertainment Department. I met my husband there who was also a performer. After four incredible years working with the Mouse, we moved to his hometown in the Bay Area.

I eventually got my Bachelor’s in Kinesiology and worked in the fitness industry for ten years before a knee injury ended my career. Not sure what to do with my time, I applied to job posting to be an online journalist. I loved writing, but had no experience. I didn’t hear back so I wrote up a review about a local restaurant and sent it to them to prove I could do the job. Twenty-four hours later, I was a journalist with AOL Media/Pleasanton Patch.

I spent three great years with them before cut backs forced me without a job again. That’s when I started writing my first novel, which went nowhere. Dozens of rejection letters later. I started a second book. A year later I was offered representation by Thao Le from Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency and within another six months I was offered a book deal. EVERLAND (Scholastic) is scheduled to debut Summer of 2016!

Today I live in the Bay Area with my husband and three sons who are my biggest fans. While they’re off at work and school, I bounce ideas off my four-legged, furry family members, Odie and Sammy.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

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Tour Schedule:

Week One:
5/2/2016 – Brittany’s Book Rambles – Interview
5/3/2016 – BookHounds YA – Review
5/4/2016 – Novel Novice – Guest Post
5/5/2016 – A Glass Of Wine – Review
5/6/2016 – Two Chicks on Books – Interview

Week Two:
5/9/2016 – Beauty and the Bookshelf – Review
5/10/2016 – Pandora’s Books – Excerpt
5/11/2016 – Please Feed the Bookworm – Review
5/12/2016 – Once Upon a Twilight – Excerpt
5/13/2016 – 5 Girls Book Reviews – Review

Author Spotlight: The Society by Jodie Andrefski (Interview + Excerpt)

Apr19

Hey everyone! I’m really excited to have Jodie Andrefski, author of The Society (May 3, 2016 – Entangled: Teen) here for an interview! Plus, don’t forget to enter the insanely epic contest that Jodie has going on here!

Before we get into the interview, here’s more about the book:

What starts as a simple revenge plot turns deadly inside Trinity Academy’s gold-plated secret society, and seventeen-year-old Sam Evans must decide if vengeance is worth the price.

Trinity Academy’s gold-plated secret society is about to be turned upside down. Seventeen-year-old Sam Evans plots revenge on her ex-bestie, Jessica, who happens to perch at the top of the Society’s social ladder–and helped put Sam’s dad in jail. Sam may no longer be cool enough to be invited to rush the Society, but she’s tech-savvy enough to know how to use it in her plan.

Sam fake taps three “initiates” to do her dirty work, each none the wiser that they’re merely puppets in a quest to dethrone Jessica. Convinced Sam is losing it, her best friend Jeremy distances himself, which just fuels Sam’s manic personality. But after Sam meets a hot stranger in a coffee shop, she’s sure the gods might finally be taking pity on her. Everything seems to be coming together-revenge, romance, respect-until she’s confused by her growing attraction to Jeremy and her plotting starts to derail.

Get-backs can be a bitch, and things nosedive when Sam realizes her plan isn’t as flawless as she thinks-and if she’s not careful she could be joining her dad behind bars. With one girl hospitalized and another student in a coma, Sam is forced to re-examine her motives and decide who and what she’s willing to sacrifice in the name of vengeance.

Goodreads | Amazon | The Book Depository
Kobo | IndieBound

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And now for the interview! Enjoy!

Question: Congrats! The Society will be out in the world soon! What are you most looking forward to in the coming weeks/months?
Answer: Thank you! =) I think what I am most looking forward to is actually holding The Society in my hands after all the months and months of hard work, as well as seeing it in a bookstore. Plus, I love to hear reader reactions on the book.

Question: With the release of The Girlfriend Request in January and The Society in May, you only have 4 months between the two releases. What has your schedule been like? Has it been difficult juggling two books at once?
Answer: Short answer, YES, lol. There was a point before their releases where I was working on edits for both at the same time, but I am super lucky to have a fantastic editor and team behind me at Entangled. It was kind of like, okay, here is the second round of edits due for TGR and we need the first round of edits due for The Society. Plus my publicist at Entangled, Melissa, is wonderful. She keeps me sane. I’m also lucky that my daughter is so fond of ordering pizza for dinner when things get too crazy. =)

Question: Describe The Society in ten words or less. Go!
Answer: A revenge plot against The Society goes very wrong.

Question: The Society deals with a deadly revenge plot and hacking, among other things. What inspired this story?
Answer: I’ve always loved any stories dealing with secret societies, whether in film or books. I wanted to take that interest and combine it with the very real issue of bullying going on in schools, and examine what can happen as a result. As humans, sometimes we feel we just want to get back at the person hurting us, and this desire can drive us in an unhealthy manner as it did with Sam in the book. She turned into someone she didn’t really like, and made a lot of bad choices and things really snowballed from there.

Question: If you were invited to join a secret society, would you? Would you make it through the initiation?
Answer: You know, depending on what kind of secret society it was, and how old I was when I was invited, I might be tempted. The concept is just sort of alluring to me. But no, I doubt I’d ever make it through initiation, I don’t think I’m daring enough to do most of the tasks they would probably require.

Question: In what way – if at all – has your Master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling aided your writing?
Answer: I think it has helped me to add depth to some of the character’s motivations. Even when they are acting out in an unhealthy way, I hope for it to be realistic for a teenager. Sometimes as adults reading YA, we think, “Oh that’s not smart.” And the reality is…no it probably isn’t. But the teenage version of ourselves probably did a lot of not so well thought out things, at least I know I did. As teens, it is so easy for emotions to take over and rule our actions…that is a teen’s physical makeup. Their brains are literally incapable of fully processing long term consequences until the age of 19. And if a teen is dealing with something like depression, or anxiety, or in Sam’s case, bi-polar disorder—this can manifest in all kinds of ways when left untreated. Mood swings, poor decision making, etc. She had the loss of both adult figures in her life, then a best friend. She had a strong need to be accepted and was willing to do just about anything to feel accepted, to feel like she mattered. Even if that meant taking actions that if she was just able to stop, step back and think objectively…she might not have done.

Question: Craziest thing you’ve had to Google for a work in progress?
Answer: An all-natural drug able to knock someone out without killing them

Question: What books would you recommend to a reader who loved yours, and wants to read something similar?
Answer: Get Even (Don’t Get Mad) by Gretchen McNeil

Question: What are three must-have items when you sit down to write?
Answer: Coffee, quiet, more coffee

Question: What book are you currently reading?
Answer: Forget Tomorrow by Pintip Dunn

Question: Are you working on anything new?
Answer: I am actually working on two. Both are YA. One is a psychological thriller(ish) and the other is a about a teenage girl who goes back in time to try to figure out who murdered a local boy in an effort to prevent his murder.

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And now for the excerpt! Enjoy!

If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?
—William Shakespeare

I pushed through the heavy oak doors leading into Trinity Academy, ignoring the groups of students milling around the wide steps of the ornate brick building. Not like it mattered. They were all busy talking, laughing, and fist-bumping each other, mostly jocks and their adoring fans, none of whom I had the time or interest to speak with.

“Out of my way.”

Bren Fessler—bedazzled toady to my ex-best friend Jessica—shoved past, leaving me gagging from lingering fumes of eau de bitch. I rolled my eyes, hacked through the last of the stench, and headed toward my locker.

Trinity was founded like a hundred years ago, and if buildings really do have a personality, this one had the snooty air of old money. I mean, it was a beautiful campus; it just sucked that I couldn’t stand the majority of the kids who went there anymore. But since Trinity had a stellar academic program that looked great on college applications, I’d remained, even after everything that happened. Besides, my creative writing teacher, Ms. Kemper, had pretty much assured me a shining recommendation to Columbia, her alma mater. I think she felt sorry for me. So I stayed. I wasn’t about to blow my chance at getting into my dream school even if everything around me sucked.

As I neared my locker, five or six members of the golden crew sashayed in a little blond bubble across from me, confident toothy smiles all over their faces. Since it was the start of Rush week, they were probably all certain they’d find a typed note covertly slipped through one of the vents in their locker, an invitation to rush our high school’s hallowed cloak-and-dagger Musterian Society.

Even the name sounded decayed, like a musty blanket you’d find rotting in your grandmother’s attic. I’d looked it up once. Musterian. Turns out it’s Greek for “a mystery confided only to the initiated and not to ordinary mortals.”

There would obviously be no note in my locker. I was way too ordinary, and mortal was putting it mildly. My hair wasn’t blond and shiny enough. I didn’t prance around in a cutesy little uniform with TA emblazoned across my not-quite-big-enough boobs.

The cheerleaders seemed to miss what just about everyone else recognized. The irony in the fact that our school’s initials also stood for a completely different phrase. Then again, they’d probably be just as proud to wear the label, Tits and Ass. Yet these Einsteins were usually the ones chosen to pledge, at least to meet the female initiates quota.

Just about every kid at school dreamed of being invited to rush. Invitation to the Society wasn’t only a guaranteed boost to your social standing, although that was a given. No, being in the Society offered even more tangible, life-changing perks. It pretty much guaranteed acceptance to the college of your choice—past members served on the admissions boards of some of the best schools in the country. Dream jobs tended to follow. The Society members helped their own.

We weren’t supposed to know all that, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out when you saw school acceptance letters roll in. The Society was a who’s who of the in crowd, guaranteeing a life we all fantasize about.

They didn’t ask people like me to join. I wasn’t cool enough, at least not anymore.

Steps away from my locker, the golden crew parted like the Red Sea. Whispers and giggles engulfed me—dark as smoke, and just as acrid.

“Oh my God, it’s perfect.”

“…her expression.”

I tried to ignore them, just another day in Trinity paradise.

Until I saw it. Jessica. She’d gone too far this time.

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And now for the giveaway! One lucky winner will win a signed ARC of The Society by Jodie Andrefski!

-Giveaway is US only

-Winner has 48 hours to respond. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be selected.

-You must be 13 or older to enter OR have your parents’ permission.

-I am not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged items.

-I reserve the right to change any rules as I see fit for each individual giveaway

With that being said, I wish you luck! May the odds be ever in your favor!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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About the Author:

Jodie Andrefski lives in a tiny town in PA that no one has ever heard of with her teenage daughter. She received her BS in Secondary English Education from Penn State, then taught a few years before changing focus and going back to school for her Master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling.

Andrefski always loved both reading and writing., and wrote for several websites and magazines before deciding to write novels. She writes YA Contemporary, most of which involves at least some kissing. The Girlfriend Request is her debut novel through Entangled Crush, and The Society will be releasing through Entangled Teen in May 2016.

She is a firm believer that just about anything can be cured with chocolate or by watching an episode or two of Supernatural. (There’s a lot to be said for the pretty boys.) =)

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