Bright Burning Stars| Blog Tour | ARC Review

Bright Burning Stars

Author: A.K. Small

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Pages: 304

Publication: May 21st, 2019

Age Group: 14+ [due to heavy content]

Purchase: Amazon Algonquin Books Barnes & Noble Book Depository

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis:

Best friends Marine Duval and Kate Sanders have trained at the Paris Opera Ballet School since childhood, where they’ve formed an inseparable bond forged by respective family tragedies and a fierce love for dance. When the body of a student is found in the dorms just before the start of their final year, Marine and Kate begin to ask themselves what they would do to win the ultimate prize: to be the one girl selected to join the Opera’s prestigious corps de ballet. Would they die? Cheat? Seduce the most talented boy in the school, dubbed the Demigod, hoping his magic would make them shine, too? Neither girl is sure.

But then Kate gets closer to the Demigod, even as Marine has begun to capture his heart. And as selection day draws near, the competition—for the prize, for the Demigod—becomes fiercer, and Marine and Kate realize they have everything to lose, including each other.

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Press Release + Author

PRESS RELEASE

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Thoughts

Thank you to Algonquin Books for sending me a finished copy and for allowing me to participate in the blog tour. My review is 100% honest.

TW: eating disorder, dysmorphia, abortion, mental illness, discussions of suicide, emotional abuse, toxic relationships/friendships

Judging from the cover alone, the book gave me some Black Swan vibes. If you’ve seen the movie, you know how dark that movie was, so I expected this book to be pretty dark. It definitely didn’t go below those expectations.

The book is in two POVs: Kate and Marine, students enrolled in their final year at an elite ballet training school in Paris. They are in Division One, which is top notch. Only one boy and one girl can win. Obviously, there is unhealthy competition. Every man or woman for his or herself.

The friendship between Kate and Marine is immediate, but it wasn’t always “good”. There is a toxic environment surrounding them, but it’s really up to the reader to decipher that since Small doesn’t initially address it.

Let’s talk about Kate first. Her mother left her behind at a young age and this has led her to be insecure, jealous and incredibly sneaky and scheming. It’s borderline scary, but truthfully reminiscent of a mental illness. Like the toxic environment, the mental illness is never directly addressed. What’s worse is she uses her friendship with Marine to get what she wants and to make things go the way they should, in her mind. Regardless of being this way, she still seeks approval. She needs someone to tell her she is doing well or to just know that she is “accepted”, I suppose. Her entire character arc is flawed. I mean, it makes her character terribly interesting but some of things she goes through and does was a shocker. It was just like…what? Her ending was…odd. Without spoiling anything, it just didn’t seem real.

Marine is different. She used to have a fraternal twin, but he passed away. The twist is that her brother had the ballet dream, so she is completing it for him. This puts more pressure on her. Marine, while trying to accomplish all this, worries about her appearance and weight, even though she is described as “naturally thin”. I’m not sure what that means, though. Either way, an eating disorder is a cliche in the ballet world and Marine goes through this while she competes against others. Her disorder is never appropriately finished, in my view. She tries to solve it with romantic feelings and that is pretty uncomfortable. I’ve never dealt with an eating disorder myself, but using someone you have feelings for is not the way to go. Her ending was terribly disappointing, more so than Kate. I just wasn’t feeling it. 

I applaud Small for attacking such difficult topics, although the way they were handled and concluded was not healthy whatsoever. It painted a picture for readers that isn’t realistic or what should be taken away after reading this book. On a different note, this book was hard to put down. I don’t know if it was the dark tone that I fell for or just wanting to see how this plot progressed, but it was good regardless of the above. I think Small has something going here and she has plenty of potential in the literary world for young adults. It is possible, though, to incorporate real life (the correct way) with an interesting and dark plot. 

 

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This Is Not a Love Scene | Blog Tour |ARC Review

This Is Not a Love Scene

Author: S.C. Megale

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Pages: 320

Publication: May 7th, 2019

Age Group: 12+

Purchase: Amazon Wednesday Books Barnes & Noble Book Depository

Jacket Copy Synopsis

“This Is Not A Love Scene rings brilliantly true from the first page to the last.” —David Baldacci, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Funny, emotional, and refreshingly honest, S.C. Megale’s This is Not a Love Scene is for anyone who can relate to feeling different while navigating the terrifying and thrilling waters of first love. 

Lights, camera—all Maeve needs is action. But at eighteen, a rare form of muscular dystrophy usually stands in the way of romance. She’s got her friends, her humor, and a passion for filmmaking to keep her focus off consistent rejection…and the hot older guy starring in her senior film project.

Tall, bearded, and always swaying, Cole Stone is everything Maeve can’t be. And she likes it. Between takes, their chemistry is shockingly electric. 

Suddenly, Maeve gets a taste of typical teenage dating life, but girls in wheelchairs don’t get the hot guy—right? Cole’s attention challenges everything she once believed about her self-image and hopes for love. But figuring this out, both emotionally and physically, won’t be easy for either of them. Maeve must choose between what she needs and what she wants, while Cole has a tendency to avoid decisions altogether. And the future might not wait for either.

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Thoughts

I’d like to thank Wednesday Books for letting me be a part of the blog tour for this book. My review is 100% honest. 

Maeve has a rare form of muscular dystrophy and she is eager to get into a relationship, since she has never been in one before. She wants the happy ending and when she meets Cole, it seems like she can have it. Regardless of their chemistry though, she finds out it’s not smooth sailing.

I adored Maeve. She is such a wonderful person in this book and I was cheering for her, wanting her to get that happy ending that she totally deserves. I actually liked her better than Cole all together. She knows what she wants, even if it may be wrong sometimes (hint hint), but her heart is just there. It’s hard to ignore. She really is a beautiful character and I found the representation in this novel pretty spot on, in my opinion. Maeve, all together, just seemed real. I loved it.

Cole just seemed like, dare I say, a dick at times. I have no idea how to feel about him, honestly. Sure, he has moments that you’re like “Oh! He is a nice guy” but then you get let down because he is just a dick, plain and simple. What sucks is that Maeve does have another person that is interested in her wholeheartedly, but she is so stuck on Cole. It got annoying. 

The novel itself is missing a few things. There are plot holes here and there, but not too detrimental. There are some triggers present, such as suicide and child abuse. Some things were rushed, which I don’t understand why that seems to be a “natural” thing for contemporary romance. If authors are nervous about making contemporary romance as long as fantasy novels, I don’t see why. It would definitely fill in those holes. 

The book has potential and it was cute and I think the reason for the four stars is for Maeve herself because it’s not the easiest thing to create such a likable character, regardless of the flaws present. I do applaud Megale for that. I do hope Megale continues writing more books because I’m interested to see what else she has up her sleeve.

Reviews:

“Megale is a terrific new voice in the world of YA. This Is Not a Love Scene rings brilliantly true from the first page to the last. Megale’s prose is refreshingly original, her pacing already at a master level, and her storytelling abilities will pull hard on every emotion you have…Look out for this writer.” —David Baldacci, #1 New York Times bestselling author

“A humorous, hearty novel about the realities (and fantasies) of being a teenager with a disability….Readers will want to zoom in on this [#ownvoices] story featuring a strong, sexually confident, disabled female character.” —Kirkus Reviews 

“Informative and inspiring. It makes for an altogether thought-provoking and empathetic reading experience.” —Booklist

“This Is Not a Love Scene is so good. S.C. Megale is remarkable… This book is the result of her unswerving determination and undoubted talent.” —John Flanagan, New York Times bestselling author of the Ranger’s Apprentice series

“My ride-along with Maeve was a joy from first sentence to last. She’s authentic, unabashedly honest, fun to be with, and I still catch myself wondering what she’s been up to lately.” —Eric Lindstrom, author of Not If I See You First

“Megale’s pacing and style are absolutely wonderful. I feel deeply attached to her characters, and I can’t believe how perceptive many of her descriptions/observations are, especially disability related ones.”  —Shane Burcaw, author of Laughing at My Nightmare

About the Author:

S. C. MEGALE is an author and filmmaker. She’s been profiled in USA Today, The Washington Post, and New York Newsday, and has appeared on NBC’s “Today Show” and the CBS Evening News for her philanthropic and literary work. As a humanitarian, she’s spoken on the USS Intrepid, at the NASDAQ opening bell, and to universities and doctors nationwide. She enjoys making connections all over the world. 

Megale was raised in the long grass of the Civil War, hunting for relics and catching fireflies along the banks of Bull Run. A shark tooth, flutes, and a flask are some of the items that hang from her wheelchair, and she had a fear of elevators until realizing this was extremely inconvenient. She lives with her family which includes her parents, sister and brother, service dog, and definitely-not-service dog. 

This is Not a Love Scene is her first published novel.

Wicked Saints (Something Dark & Holy Series, #1) | BLOG TOUR | ARC Review

Wicked Saints (Something Dark & Holy Series, #1)

Author: Emily A. Duncan

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Pages: 400

Publication: April 2nd, 2019

Age Group: 14+

Purchase: Amazon  Wednesday Books Barnes & Noble Book Depository

 

 

 

Jacket Copy Synopsis:

“Prepare for a snow-frosted, blood-drenched fairy tale where the monsters steal your heart and love ends up being the nightmare.” – Roshani Chokshi, New York Times bestselling author of The Star-Touched Queen

A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.

A prince in danger must decide who to trust.

A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings. 

Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.

In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light. Wicked Saints is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holy trilogy.

“This book destroyed me and I adored it.”- Stephanie Garber, New York Times bestselling author of Caraval

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Thoughts

I’d like to thank Wednesday Books for letting me be a part of the blog tour. My review is completely honest.

Let me tell you something before I dive into this review. I tried so hard, months before I got this blog tour opportunity, to get an early copy of this book. Since hearing about it last year and all the hype around it, I was all over reading this book early because I just couldn’t wait until its release date. When I heard there would be a drop at YALLFest, I was determined to get in that line and get it. Just my luck, the line was a mess and there were very limited copies and I ended up missing out on getting one. I tried to do some ARC trades and that failed. Then, I got the email from Wednesday Books about the blog tour and I jumped on it without any hesitation. The book gods must still love me.

I really don’t know how to properly execute this review in the way I normally write my reviews because this book was just –

It exceeded my expectations.

Fair warning. This book does involve self-harm and abuse, but Emily has been pretty open about that so there is nothing to be concerned about, but read the book with caution if that triggers you.

In this book, there is something called Blood Magic, but the entire magic system is connected with the Gods. I definitely see this as something very important to pay attention to when reading this book. Nadya, our main character, is a cleric. She can communicate with the gods, which hasn’t really been possible in like 30 years. It doesn’t take long for the action to start. I mean, the first chapter ends with blood. Take it how you will.

Every. Single. Chapter has something. It’s dark, it’s intense, it’s demented. It’s f***ing amazing. The POVs are easy to navigate and there is an extra POV at the end of this book. I like a good book that keeps me guessing and turning my head to the point of whiplash and Emily’s debut did not disappoint. I just-

Emily, I need more.

Seriously, I’m still sitting here just contemplating what life is and what it was without this book. I can see it now. This book is going to be on the bestseller list. If you are hesitant about the hype of this book, do not hesitate. Please. It’s everything you could ever want in a dark and twisted fantasy novel. It’ll fit perfectly on your shelf.

Actually, you may want to shelve it in some sort of shrine because it deserves that recognition.

Emily Duncan, you have officially become one of my favorite fantasy authors.

Pronunciation Guide

Reviews:

“Prepare for a snow frosted, blood drenched fairy tale where the monsters steal your heart and love ends up being the nightmare. Utterly absorbing.” – Roshani Chokshi, New York Times bestselling author of The Star-Touched Queen

“Full of blood and monsters and magic—this book destroyed me and I adored it. Emily is a wicked storyteller, she’s not afraid to hurt her characters or her readers. If you’ve ever fallen in love with a villain you will fall hard for this book.” – Stephanie Garber, New York Times bestselling author of Caraval

“This is the novel of dark theology and eldritch blood-magic that I’ve been waiting for all my life. It’s got a world at once brutal and beautiful, filled with characters who are wounded, lovable, and ferocious enough to break your heart. A shattering, utterly satisfying read.” – Rosamund Hodge, author of Cruel Beauty and Bright Smoke, Cold Fire 

“Wicked Saints is a lush, brutal, compelling fantasy that is dark, deep, and bloody—absolutely riveting! With a boy who is both man and monster, mysterious saints with uncertain motives, and a girl filled with holy magic who is just beginning to understand the full reaches of her power, this gothic jewel of a story will sink its visceral iron claws into you, never letting go until you’ve turned the last page. And truthfully, not even then -the explosive ending will haunt you for days! ” – Robin LaFevers, New York Times bestselling author of the His Fair Assassin trilogy 

“Dark, bloody, and monstrously romantic. This is the villain love interest that we’ve all been waiting for.” – Margaret Rogerson, New York Times bestselling author of An Enchantment of Ravens 

“Seductively dark and enchanting, Wicked Saints is a trance you won’t want to wake from. Duncan has skillfully erected a world like no other, complete with provocative magic, sinister creatures, and a plot that keeps you guessing. This spellbinding YA fantasy will bewitch readers to the very last page.” – Adrienne Young, New York Times bestselling author of Sky in the Deep 

About the Author:

EMILY A. DUNCAN works as a youth services librarian. She received a Master’s degree in library science from Kent State University, which mostly taught her how to find obscure Slavic folklore texts through interlibrary loan systems. When not reading or writing, she enjoys playing copious amounts of video games and dungeons and dragons. Wicked Saints is her first book. She lives in Ohio.

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In Another Life | BLOG TOUR | ARC Review

In Another Life

Author: C.C. Hunter

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Pages: 352

Publication: March 26th, 2019

Age Group: 13+

Purchase: Amazon Wednesday Books Barnes & Noble Book Depository

 

 

 

 

Jacket Copy Synopsis:

What would you do if your whole life was a lie and learning the truth could cost you your life? 

From New York Times bestselling author of the Shadow Falls series comes C. C. Hunter’s new YA thriller about a girl who learns that she may have been kidnapped as a child, and must race to uncover the truth about her past before she winds up a victim.

Chloe was three years old when she became Chloe Holden, but her adoption didn’t scar her, and she’s had a great life. Now, fourteen years later, her loving parents’ marriage has fallen apart and her mom has moved them to Joyful, Texas. Starting twelfth grade as the new kid at school, everything Chloe loved about her life is gone. And feelings of déjà vu from her early childhood start haunting her. 

When Chloe meets Cash Colton she feels drawn to him, as though they’re kindred spirits. Until Cash tells her the real reason he sought her out: Chloe looks exactly like the daughter his foster parents lost years ago, and he’s determined to figure out the truth. 

As Chloe and Cash delve deeper into her adoption, the more things don’t add up, and the more strange things start happening. Why is Chloe’s adoption a secret that people would kill for?

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Thoughts

I’d like to thank Wednesday Books for letting me be a part of the blog tour. My review is completely honest.

You guys know I’m a sucker for the cheesy romance with tension – both sexual and angst, some kissing, typical good looks, etc. The summary drew me in because of the concept between these two characters. I’ll say that it didn’t disappoint, but it did in some parts. 

This book is about a girl named Chloe who moves to Joyful, Texas. I wonder if this place really exists, though. Anyway, she lives with her mom who is a cancer survivor and is extremely bitter over her illness and the fact that her husband (Chloe’s dad) cheated with a much younger woman. When Chloe attends her first day at a new school, she starts to interact with Cash, who believes she is a con woman trying to get money from his foster parents, who have had their child missing for fifteen years. But, here is the twist while these two team up to solve this mystery: is Chloe the missing child?

Let’s start off with the characters. I think they fit the typical gushy teen romance main characters. The girl has boobs, which is unfortunately mentioned quite a lot for some reason. She is pretty, there is a hard life going on, she is new. The guy, Cash, is a hard ass. He throws punches when he is pushed far enough, he is handsome and he has issues, too. These kind of characters, though, don’t turn me off. I love it because it’s always a different story as to how they get together and I eat up that tension. It just makes me swoon and root for the couple. 

So, their relationship. I’ll admit that this is a total insta-love thing. Well,  maybe more of an insta-attraction, if that exists. Chloe and Cash have a spark and some readers might think it’s only because Cash believes Chloe is the missing child and that is all they have in common. No, they learn a lot more about each other along the way. They have little arguments, they push each other mentally and logically, but the connection is just there. It’s angsty, romantic, sexy and I loved it. The insta-whatever wasn’t the best because I can’t really agree with that. Maybe that’s a personal thing, I don’t know. 

Let’s get down to the stuff that turned me off and disappointed me. The storyline is great. I had my world tipped while reading certain parts. I read one scene in class and my mouth dropped open in shock. Thankfully, nobody saw me. But, I applaud C.C. Hunter for letting that happen. You gotta have some shock factor with these romances. What really disappointed me was the detailing and the flow of certain chapters. The detailing was off. Once a paragraph started or a scene started or even dialogue started, it would be cut abruptly and go to something else. It caused the flow to give me whiplash. Sometimes, it was too fast. I might be a hypocrite in saying this, considering my history with writing, but sometimes, it read like Fanfiction. Like, if you are still kind of new with Fanfiction but you are getting some of the skills together to not make it all happen in one chapter. Does that make sense? I mean, when I started Fanfiction years ago, my writing was crap. I grew and I look back at those stories and cringe, but I’m proud of how I have grown. But, this isn’t about me.

I loved the story all together, but sometimes, it just went too fast and too jumpy. The ending was really abrupt, too. If you were to see it on screen, it might last all of five minutes, give or take a few. This is why I gave it 3.5 stars, but this doesn’t mean I did not love the story. The story, I suppose, is more important. If you still feel some sort of connection or feeling with the story, I think you’ve accomplished plenty as an author and you’ve made a reader happy. I know I was with the outcome either way.

Reviews:

“Hunter deftly delivers a complicated back-and-forth point of view between Chloe and Cash, building suspense along with a steamy sense of attraction between the two teens.” – Kirkus

About the Author:

C.C. HUNTER is a pseudonym for award-winning romance author Christie Craig. She is lives in Tomball, Texas, where she’s at work on her next novel.

Christie’s books include The Mortician’s Daughter series, Shadow Fall Novels and This Heart of Mine.

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Events, slacking and inspiration

Hello fellow readers, bloggers and writers!

I realize that I have been very quiet (again) and it has nothing to do with my personal health, thank God. I have been kind of busy these past two weeks. One week, I traveled to Virginia to (finally!) see my friend Sarah Glenn Marsh and to celebrate the release of her novel Song of the Dead. By the way, if you haven’t picked up her series yet, please do. It was a lot of fun visiting One More Page bookstore for the first time and getting to meet new people and eat wonderful food! It was my first even of 2019 so I had a great time and it brought back my inspiration for reading and writing. Naturally, though, I worried that feeling would go away like it always does.

The next week, I went to see Leigh Bardugo in Atlanta. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I was going to go because it was Super Bowl and I couldn’t find a place to stay. Luckily, my uncle let me stay in his apartment in Atlanta. I met up with my friend Brenn and we waited outside of the library for a little over an hour. The weather wasn’t too bad, but my feet were killing me. I had a party after the event and I was wearing heels. Bad idea…

My inspiration for writing was fueled heavily by Brenn. I had shown her a snippet of my KOD draft and her reaction was one that every author loves: utter betrayal. She urged me to write more and offered to look at my work if I ever needed feedback. To be honest, I haven’t touched KOD in a few months. I was actually going to shelve it because I had found an old manuscript with completed dialogue. But, now I think I might work on both. I don’t know. My inspiration for writing is still with me right now, so at least it’s not gone. Maybe it’s still with me because I’m so much happier lately. Other times, it will go away because I will be terribly depressed.

I’ve been slacking with reading lately and I can’t figure out why, exactly. I’ve been stuck reading The Gilded Wolves. You guys know how much I love Roshani’s work. But, I’ve been reading this one book for over a month. I will take breaks and, when I pick it back up, I will have no idea what is happening because I forget. I have heard on and off things about this book, but I don’t want to DNF it. I’ve been craving romance more than fantasy lately. Maybe that’s what I need to fuel my goal again. I picked up I Wish You All the Best again after putting it down for a while. I’ve got some free time today before my night class, so I’ll read as much as I can.

I’m not feeling stressed or sad anymore. I guess I just feel stuck on where to begin with some things. I’m itching to write down some words and turn some pages. I wish I had more blog tours, but the month of February is completely free. I have two blog tours in late March that I’m excited about. It’s strange, though, to not have a lot on my plate. For once, I actually want a busy schedule. But, maybe it’s a good thing that I’m slowing down with reviews and scheduling tours. I don’t like that my bookstagram is quiet. I’d like to post more, but it’s becoming hard lately to find the time or right place to photograph my books. I’ve been taking photos of the same books for too long and I need variety. What I need to do is tackle my TBR, which is filled with old ARCs and hardcovers. As springtime rolls around, too, I’ll have more opportunities for locations since I love to use flowers and warm weather for my pictures.

Anyway, I’m happy. I’m discovering myself lately, who I am in this world. 2019 has definitely been a journey so far and I’m holding on tight.

Only a Breath Apart Blog Tour | Exclusive Excerpt

Hello, readers! I’m happy to give you an exclusive excerpt to Katie McGarry’s new book, Only a Breath Apart, as a part of the official blog tour for the new book which is on shelves now!

Would you dare to defy destiny? Are our destinies written in stone? Do we become nothing more than the self-fulfilling prophesies of other people’s opinions? Or can we dare to become who we believe we were born to be?

“A gorgeous, heartfelt journey of redemption and love” (Wendy Higgins), ONLY A BREATH APART is a young adult contemporary novel from critically acclaimed Katie McGarry. “Haunting, authentic, and ultimately hopeful” (Tammara Webber), ONLY A BREATH APART is now available!

About ONLY A BREATH APART:

They say your destiny is carved in stone. But some destinies are meant to be broken.

The only curse Jesse Lachlin believes in is his grandmother’s will: in order to inherit his family farm he must win the approval of his childhood best friend, the girl he froze out his freshman year.

A fortuneteller tells Scarlett she’s psychic, but what is real is Scarlett’s father’s controlling attitude and the dark secrets at home. She may be able to escape, but only if she can rely on the one boy who broke her heart.

Each midnight meeting pushes Jesse and Scarlett to confront their secrets and their feelings, but as love blooms, the curse rears its ugly head…

You can purchase the book TODAY at these retailers: Amazon Kobo Google Play BAM Barnes & Noble Apple Books

Don’t forget to add it on Goodreads!

Want more? Check out this exclusive excerpt from Scarlett’s POV!

SCARLETT

A scraping of a chair, a tray full of food and I glance over with my practiced smile in welcome. It’s not Camila, Evangeline, or anyone else from the group. It’s green eyes, red hair, a familiar mischievous smile that used to be reserved only for me, and my blood pounds with excitement as if someone lit a sparkler in my chest. Then I frown because I’m not supposed to feel this way. Not with him. Not with anyone.

Jesse Lachlin winks at me as he sits across from me like no time has passed from when we climbed trees together. “What’s up, Tink?”

Another thrill runs through me but then my muscles tighten. Stupid, antiquated reaction belonging to a dead past. “What are you doing here?”

Jesse pops a fry into his mouth, chews, then picks up another as if he has no intention of answering. I scan the cafeteria. Several people are watching us, curious as to why Jesse Lachlin is sitting with me, or is event at lunch, or even at school.

From the lunch line, Camila’s and Evangeline’s eyes are bugging out of their heads.

What is going on? Camila mouths.

I raise my eyebrows to inform her I have no idea. Jesse digs into his corn with his fork and that’s crossing a line. “Maybe you didn’t hear me, but I asked what you’re doing here.”

He lifts his eyes to meet mine and there’s a glimmer in them that causes my lips to flatten. Fantastic. He’s here to make my life a living hell.

“It seems obvious,” he says.

If he remembers anything about me, he should recall I was never known for my patience and that he should be speaking, and speaking soon. “Just answer the question.”

“I’m eating lunch.”

I honest to God groan in frustration. “There’s no room at the inn.”

He surveys the table, takes in the empty seats, my books, and then gives me a good look. A slow look. As if he’s trying to memorize every inch he’s drinking in. My cheeks redden because that somehow feels a little too intimate for lunch. Feels a little too intimate for someone I’m no longer friends with. It feels too intimate if we were friends.

I glance away, but I sense him still staring at me. God help me, I want to stare back.

Oh my God. Katie’s books are notorious for making me swoon and that chapter is enough to give me familiar butterflies. I can’t wait to dive in! 

BONUS: Want a $50 Amazon gift card so you can buy the book for yourself among other bookish pleasures? Follow this link to the giveaway and enter!

Make sure to check out the other participating blogs for reviews and more excerpts!

January 21^st

@booksniffer7 – Review

Bickering Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Book Ballistic – Excerpt

Book Hoarder Mom – Review

Brittany and Elizabeth’s Book Boutique – Review & Excerpt

Celindareyesblog – Excerpt

Cinta Garcia de la Rosa – Excerpt

Crystal’s Book World – Excerpt

Do You Dog-ear? – Review & Excerpt

Little Shop of Readers – Excerpt

Novel Addiction – Excerpt

Resch Reads & Reviews – Review

Sister Sister Book Blog – Excerpt

This Jabberwocky Eats Books – Excerpt

Writing My Own Fairy Tale – Review

January 22^nd

A Book Lovers Playlist – Excerpt

Beware Of The Reader – Excerpt

Beyourselfbebhaltair – Review & Excerpt

Booknerd1107 – Review

CeliaMoontown – Review & Excerpt

Crazy Chaotic Book Babes – Review & Excerpt

Echoing Books – Excerpt

Gata Leitora – Excerpt

Its a mun thing – Excerpt

Mean Girls Luv Books – Review & Excerpt

Mythical Books – Excerpt

Read more sleep less – Review

Stellar Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

The Lovely Teacher Addictions – Excerpt

The Romance Reviews – Excerpt

Words Are Life – Review & Excerpt

January 23^rd

A Novel Glimpse – Review

Bewitching bibliophile – Review & Excerpt

Book Freak – Review

Books Are My Life – Review & Excerpt

Bookworm Misfit – Excerpt

ClaryNathanWill – Excerpt

Craves the Angst Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Latteandbook – Review & Excerpt

Once Upon a Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Phishbowl’s bookshelf – Review

Red Hot + Blue Reads – Review & Excerpt

Sascha Darlington’s Microcosm Explored – Excerpt

The Book Hammock – Review & Excerpt

The Readdicts Book Blog – Excerpt

Velarisreads – Excerpt

January 24^th

A Court of Coffee and Books – Review & Excerpt

Avid Reads – Excerpt

Book Boyfriend Reviews – Review

Bookishly Nerdy – Review & Excerpt

Collector of book boyfriends – Review

Dazzled by Books – Review & Excerpt

Kick Back & Review – Excerpt

Lisa Loves Literature – Excerpt

Milky Way of Books – Review

Star-Crossed Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Sweet Red Reads – Excerpt

Tale Out Loud – Excerpt

The Cover Contessa – Excerpt

The Lovely Books – Excerpt

The Start of Something New – Review & Excerpt

January 25^th

A Literary Perusal – Review & Excerpt

Abellafairytale – Excerpt

Book Bite Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Boundless Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Confessions of a Wordaholic – Review & Excerpt

Fandomly Bookish – Excerpt

Girl Plus Books – Review

I Heart Romance & YA – Review

Kaidans Seduction – Excerpt

Short and Sassy Book Blurbs – Excerpt

Tales of dreams and nightmares – Excerpt

The Book Branch – Excerpt

The Book Trollop – Review & Excerpt

Vox Libris – Review & Excerpt

Witchy Richey’s Booktastic Reviews – Excerpt

January 26^th

Ali’s Bookshelf – Review & Excerpt

Beauty and Lace – Excerpt

Blunt Book Blog – Excerpt

Book Angel Booktopia – Review & Excerpt

Bookish Intoxication Writes – Review & Excerpt

Confessions of 2 Book Lovers – Review & Excerpt

Crazii Bitches Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Family, Books and Food – Excerpt

Jesssiereads – Excerpt

Little Read Riding Hood – Review & Excerpt

Lovelyreadspublishing – Excerpt

Madison’s Library – Review & Excerpt

Rainy Days and Pajamas – Excerpt

Reese’s Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Southern Vixens Book Obsessions – Excerpt

January 27^th

3 degrees of fiction – Excerpt

All Things Dark & Dirty – Excerpt

As the Book Ends – Excerpt

Book Bitches Blog – Review

Books 4 Girls – Review & Excerpt

Bumbles and Fairy-Tales – Review & Excerpt

Chasing Faerytales – Review

Feed Your Fiction Addiction – Review

K&M Sultry Reads – Excerpt

K’s Korner – Excerpt

Less Reality More Books – Review & Excerpt

My Fangirl Chronicles – Excerpt

Poetry law and something more – Review & Excerpt

Roxy’s Reviews – Excerpt

Two Books in a Shelf – Excerpt

January 28^th

Aaly and The Books – Review

A Book Fanatic Obsession – Review & Excerpt

BenderDreamerGirl: read.dream.escape – Excerpt

Book Reader Addicts – Review & Excerpt

Bookishly Slytherclaw – Review & Excerpt

Contagious Reads – Review & Excerpt

Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Escape 2 Fiction – Review & Excerpt

Midnight Book Girl – Excerpt

PBC – Excerpt

Rad Babes Read – Review & Excerpt

The Book Hookup – Review & Excerpt

Tween 2 Teen Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

We Live and Breathe Books – Review & Excerpt

January 29^th

A Gingerly Review – Review & Excerpt

A Lovely Book Affair – Excerpt

Bangor belle books – Excerpt

Becky on Books – Review & Excerpt

Books & Tea – Review & Excerpt

Chapter by Chapter – Review & Excerpt

Cupcakesandbookshelves – Excerpt

Desperately Seeking HEA’s Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Echosreviews – Excerpt

GotToReadThoseBooks – Excerpt

Kindle and Me – Review & Excerpt

Lita’s Book Blog – Excerpt

Margay Leah Justice – Excerpt

The Book Maven – Review & Excerpt

The Library of Belle – Excerpt

January 30^th

Actin’ Up with Books – Review

Book Reader Chronicles – Review & Excerpt

Bookistry_by_Ashleigh – Excerpt

Buttermybooks – Review

Ficwishes – Review & Excerpt

Geeky Reading – Excerpt

Little Bookworm Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Lo’s Lo-Down on Books – Review & Excerpt

Read. Eat. Love. – Review & Excerpt

Taylor Fenner’s Bookish World – Review

The Butterfly Reads – Excerpt

The Writing Finch – Excerpt

YA Bibliophile – Review & Excerpt

January 31^st

Adventures in Writing – Review

Becca’s Bookish Life – Review

BookCrushin – Review & Excerpt

Here’s to Happy Endings – Excerpt

Little Lovely Books – Review & Excerpt

Margaux – Excerpt

Ms. Me28 – Excerpt

Nerdy Soul – Review & Excerpt

Readers Live A Thousand Lives – Review

TBR Book Blog – Excerpt

The Bookish Introvert – Review & Excerpt

True Story Book Blog – Excerpt

February 1^st

Alotabooks13 – Review & Excerpt

bad boys and bedtime stories book blog – Review

Caitlin’s World – Review & Excerpt

CJR The Brit – Review

Court of Binge Reading – Excerpt

Hedwig Reads – Excerpt

Literary misfit – Excerpt

Moonlight Rendezvous – Excerpt

Readers Retreats – Excerpt

The Reading Faery – Review

Total Book Geek – Excerpt

Twirling Book Princess – Review & Excerpt

Vera is Reading – Excerpt

Whoo Gives A Hoot – Excerpt

YA/NA Book Divas – Excerpt

Katie McGarry Bio:

Katie is the author of the PUSHING THE LIMITS series, THUNDER ROAD series, SAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME, and the upcoming YA novel, ONLY A BREATH APART. Her novels have received starred reviews, critical acclaim and have won multiple awards including being a multiple Goodreads Choice Award Finalist for YA Fiction, multiple RT Magazine’s Reviewer’s Choice Award Finalist for Best YA Fiction, including a win in the category, and she was a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick.

 

Links:

Website: www.katielmcgarry.com

Twitter: @katiemcgarry

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katielmcgarry

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4575371.Katie_McGarry?from_search=true

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/katielmcgarry/

Tumbler: https://katiemcgarryauthor.tumblr.com/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/katielmcgarry

 

The Whispers | Blog Tour | Book Review

 

The Whispers

Author: Greg Howard

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

Pages: 256

Age Group: 11+

Purchase: Amazon Penguin Random House Barnes & Noble Book Depository

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis:

A middle grade debut that’s a heartrending coming-of-age tale, perfect for fans of Bridge to Terabithia and Counting By 7s .

Eleven-year-old Riley believes in the whispers, magical fairies that will grant you wishes if you leave them tributes. Riley has a lot of wishes. He wishes bullies at school would stop picking on him. He wishes Dylan, his 8th grade crush, liked him, and Riley wishes he would stop wetting the bed. But most of all, Riley wishes for his mom to come back home. She disappeared a few months ago, and Riley is determined to crack the case. He even meets with a detective, Frank, to go over his witness statement time and time again.

Frustrated with the lack of progress in the investigation, Riley decides to take matters into his own hands. So he goes on a camping trip with his friend Gary to find the whispers and ask them to bring his mom back home. But Riley doesn’t realize the trip will shake the foundation of everything that he believes in forever.

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Thoughts

I’d like to thank Penguin Random House for including me in the blog tour for Greg’s new release. My review is completely honest.

Riley is a little boy that believes in magic, especially the Whispers. They are fairies that will grant wishes, just as long as you leave tributes. Naturally, as a young boy, he has a lot of wishes. What he wants is his mom back. She’s been gone for too long and he believes they are the only ones that can help him.

The one thing that shocked me about this book is that Riley is a gay character, especially at his young age. In my opinion, there is not enough of that in children’s literature, so it was nice and refreshing to see Riley’s character like this. He is an exceptional child and I absolutely loved his character growth and his imagination.

Riley lives in a religious town in South Carolina and he is still trying to figure himself out. He is surrounded by homophobic comments, bullying and lack of inclusion. This is that typical town you might read about way back when that prefers a certain type of person. Riley stands above that in his own way. He has his own point of view and I just loved his mind.

His adventure is from the viewpoint of his mind and it’s fascinating watching the adventure in this way. I had fun and I felt somewhat emotional reading this story. I don’t think it’s easy to find children’s literature like this nowadays. Especially back when I was growing up. What’s really a relief is that we are seeing a new evolution of children’s literature and I do feel like Greg’s new work will help bring children’s literature into a new light.

As for young readers alone with this story, it might take some urging to get them interested in the story. However, from personal experience, young readers are getting smarter and The Whispers is a book that I’m sure they’ll pick up instantly.

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About the Author

Greg Howard grew up near the coast of South Carolina. His hometown of Georgetown is known as the “Ghost Capital of the South” (seriously…there’s a sign), and was always a great source of material for his overactive imagination. Raised in a staunchly religious home, Greg escaped into the arts: singing, playing piano, acting, writing songs, and making up stories. Currently, Greg resides in Nashville, Tennessee, with his husband, Steve, and their three rescued fur babies Molly, Toby, and Riley.