Showing posts with label Young Adult Fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Young Adult Fantasy. Show all posts

Friday, September 4, 2020

Blog Tour Worlds of Light: The Cleansing by J.W. Elliot

Title: Worlds of Light: The Cleansing
Author: J.W. Elliot
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Release Date: July 2020
Some secrets are written in ash and fire.
Kell Crawford lives alone with his mother, who has a bizarre fascination with light. When she is murdered by a mysterious stranger, Kell goes on the run to escape the murderer and find the father who abandoned him as a baby. Chasing his mother’s last cryptic message, Kell finds his way into an underground tomb, which transports him to a strange temple where skeletal priests worship the Light and think he is their Promised One. But something has gone wrong. Some other being has possessed a portion of his soul. The priests fear and hate him, and a terrible darkness seeks to claim him—all while an ominous power is growing inside him. Now, Kell must learn to harness that power before he loses everything—even his soul.

James is a twenty-nine-year-old stuck in an older man's body. He loves to paddle his canoe, shoot his handmade longbows in the woods, make knives, study martial arts, and generally enjoys challenging himself. When not teaching or writing about the real past, he is imagining worlds and histories that might have been, should have been, or may yet be.
James has two homes (though only one house)--the mountains of Idaho and the forests of New England--where he canoes, hikes, camps, rock climbs, and shoots the longbows he makes himself. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife. ​
James is a professional historian whose published works include two histories of the Inquisition, a documentary history of Columbus's first voyage, a transcription of a colonial era account book from Weymouth, Massachusetts, and a global history of piracy. This means that he is a professional teller of stories, both real and imagined.
James's favorite author is J.R.R. Tolkien, though he will never be able to watch the Peter Jackson Hobbit films again. The first viewing nearly gave him a fit. He loves The Giver and The Book Thief. He has read all the Hunger Games novels, but thinks Katniss should have ended up with Gale. (Sorry Peeta fans.) He enjoys Harry Potter, and thinks magic should be real--so long as he owns the Elder Wand.
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Monday, March 31, 2014

Book Review for Recalled (Death Escorts #1) by Cambria Hebert




Recalled (Death Escorts #1)

by

4 stars
Reviewed by: Tonya
Format:Kindle
Published: Cambria Heart
Source: Gifted Copy Gene : Paranormal Romance


About Book

Love or Death? A simple question really. The choice seems obvious. But. What if you never knew love, what if your life was spent just trying to survive? What if you knew your fate before you were fully grown?

And then you died.

And you were given another chance. A better chance.

This new life depended upon one thing: your job. And so you agreed. You thought it would be simple. You thought it would be cut and dry.

It never is.

And now you are left holding the fate of someone else in the palm of your hand and you have to make the ultimate choice.

Love or Death?





My Thoughts

This is the first book I have ever read of Cambria Hebert's and I am rushing to get more of her books now and can't wait for the next book in this series.

Dex lives in the coldest place in America - Alaska and lives on the streets, he is street wise but not love wise. He has his little tricks down pat and on a very cold night what would be a normal move for him turns his life upside down. What happens in just a few short moments has Dex doing something he never in a million years would think of doing. And then making a deal he thinks will change his life for the better forever.

Piper is a struggling medical student working a late shift at a diner and on her way home when she bumps into a stranger on the street. She senses something about him, something that she soon learns will soon have her world spinning out of control. Piper has this special gift that she has never shared with anyone other than her best friend. And in the few moments that she touches this stranger she see's something that stays with her. And after a terrible accident she is on a mission to learn more about this man and the who calls himself Dex who comes into her life after.

I love how this book switches back and forth between characters telling the story from Dex's standpoint and then Piper's. Each chapter starts with a word and the definition of that word and that is what that chapter is about. That moment in either Dex's or Pipers life and it revolves around that word.

The story is at times very funny - Dex he struggles with what he must do, a deal made with the #1 death dealer "Grim Reaper" and these feelings for Piper that he doesn't understand or know what to do with. It is also at times very serious - you are biting your nails wondering OMG is he really doing this, will he go through with it. Piper what will happen to Piper.

The never ending mishaps with these two keep the story moving and you can't wait to get from Dex's point to Piper's point and back again. I love the other characters in this book. Piper's feisty but loyal friend Frankie is too funny she is full of spunk and attitude. Charming another who made a deal with the Grim Reaper - thinks he is all that and a box of chocolates - but Frankie sees right through him from the start. And Storm oh I love Storm's comebacks.

This is a great read I really enjoyed it and can't wait to read more of her books. ~Tonya~





 

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani Blog Tour and Review with Giveaway



Book Info-
Title- Sunbolt 
Series- The Sunbolt Chronicles # 1 
By-Intisar Khanani
Publication Date- June 17, 2013 
Published By- Purple Monkey Press 
Genre- YA Fantasy

Blurb- 
The winding streets and narrow alleys of Karolene hide many secrets, and Hitomi is one of them. Orphaned at a young age, Hitomi has learned to hide her magical aptitude and who her parents really were. Most of all, she must conceal her role in the Shadow League, an underground movement working to undermine the powerful and corrupt Archmage Wilhelm Blackflame.

When the League gets word that Blackflame intends to detain—and execute—a leading political family, Hitomi volunteers to help the family escape. But there are more secrets at play than Hitomi’s, and much worse fates than execution. When Hitomi finds herself captured along with her charges, it will take everything she can summon to escape with her life.





Excerpt #3 

 In the darkness, something chuckles, a sound like the rustling of dead grasses, the snapping of winter-hardened twigs underfoot.

“Amused?” Kol asks. “I thought you would appreciate her.”

“Your men run like startled rabbits. Their noses even twitch the same way.”

I press my back against the wall, turn my head to face the door, and then slowly, while the lantern still lights the room, slide a glance towards the speaker.

Kol tries to laugh. “Humans.”

The creature doesn’t answer. He sits against the far wall, his legs crossed, his back resting against the stones. He is tall and gaunt, so thin his face is but a skull stretched over with skin, his eyes so faintly colored that I can almost imagine they are not even there. His hair falls to his shoulders in a straggly fringe of white. His tunic and pants hang off his frame, and his hands where they rest over his knees are hardly more than bone. If he were human, he would be dead.


Kol says, “You’ll want to know a thing or two about your dinner.”



Links-
Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18075001-sunbolt
Kindle-http://www.amazon.com/Sunbolt-The-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B00DE2RXEM/ 
Nook- http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sunbolt-intisar-khanani/1115656459 
Kobo- http://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/books/Sunbolt/6RT3k6M3HEqIDYPN-Nv7Yw 
iTunes- https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/sunbolt/id726629863?mt=11 
Diesel- http://www.diesel-ebooks.com/item/SW00000318516/Khanani-Intisar-Sunbolt/1.html 


Our Review

Wow ! What a ride an awesome book!This is a new author for me and she wowed me right from the beginning.The story had a great plot like-able characters and the story was action packed from beginning to end.

I am always a little leary of  trying new authors especially someone I have never heard of before but, my fears were misplaced.I have been trying to broaden my reading genes of late an adding new authors to my repertoire and I am very happy that I gave this author a chance as the story was very engaging from beginning to the very end.

The plot had so much going on all the time many secrets some we learned of what they were others still kept very much in the dark about. So much evil lurking about,secret societies,plots to commit murder,power and position among the nobles.Who's who and who is a threat ?Trust no one with your secrets and protect that secret at all cost.

The cast of characters were made up of protectors,lycan's,werewolves,breather's,vampire's, mage's, those who wield magic and witches.


I normally have one character I single out and they become my absolute favorite but, this time around I had two of them Hitomi and Val.

Hitomi is a young girl who is  in hiding and is concealing a very big secret.Both her parents were very powerful mage's. Hitomi is in hiding and being raised by another who is hiding her parentage and also the powers that she possesses.Her parents have not taught her the ways of her gift which make her magic very powerful and very dangerous.

I loved Hitomi character she was such a brave soul.She cared for those around her without the thought of her own safety.She even willing helped those who betrayed her an the others who were trying to save the lives of a noble family.Even when things were so bleak she stayed strong and would stop at nothing to free herself from captivity .I love brave women in stories there my hero's.She was  kind caring and had a very clever mind.She had a sense of humor among her closest friends and she was very outspoken to those she did not like or trust.You felt bad for her a she shoulders a lot of responsibility keeping her secret is one of them if found out it could mean death.You sense that sadness that surrounds her losing both her parents she is so lonely an sacred even though she is surrounded by those who care about her and love her.

Val another favorite of mine.He is known as a breather and is feared even by those who are very powerful.His gift is that he can suck the life out of those he choses to.Without using his gift he cannot survive.When we met Val he was dying but, he a Hitomi formed a bond between them when they were both locked up awaiting death.A unlikely friendship some would say.I believe this bond is  now forged for life.I love him because being mistreated and in captivity for a year he did not lose his sense of honor and caring.Val excretes danger from even his pores yet cares very deeply for a girl who he knows nothing about.You definitely feel his loneliness who wants to have anything to do with you when he could kill you at any moment.Yet, this man has found someone who has come to care for him deeply .Yet, he knows he is better off alone or around others like himself.I sense that there could be a romance building between this couple even if it would be dangerous for both of them but, Val struggles with his emotions as he is so afraid that who and what he his could harm someone he as grown to care for.He is fierce in his protectiveness of Hitomi yet still believes he needs to protect her from himself also.

I was glad to have been apart of Hitomi and Val's journey.This story was quite the page turner from beginning to end.I did not want to put the book down and read it into the we hours of the morning until it was finished and then decided I did not want the story to end.Had then been a sequel to the book already out I would have started on the next story in its series.

The author did a wonderful job at keeping me engaged in the story and wanting more with every turn of the pages.So looking forward to reading the next installment in this series. What a wonderful story....


Recommended to all those would like fantasy and young adult books with a paranormal theme to it.




About the Author-
Intisar Khanani grew up a nomad and world traveler. Born in Wisconsin, she has lived in five different states as well as in Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea. She first remembers seeing snow on a wintry street in Zurich, Switzerland, and vaguely recollects having breakfast with the orangutans at the Singapore Zoo when she was five.

Intisar currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with her husband and two young daughters. Until recently, she wrote grants and developed projects to address community health and infant mortality with the Cincinnati Health Department—which was as close as she could get to saving the world. Now she focuses her time on her two passions: raising her family and writing fantasy.

Intisar’s latest projects include a companion trilogy to her debut novel Thorn, featuring a new heroine introduced in her free short story The Bone Knife … and of course, she’s hard at work on the remaining installments of The Sunbolt Chronicles.

Website- http://booksbyintisar.com
Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/intisar_Khanani
Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/booksbyintisar
Twitter- https://twitter.com/IntisarKhanani 



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Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Book Review For Forsaken (Daughters of the Sea #1) by Kristen Day




Forsaken (Daughters of the Sea #1)

by
5 stars
Reviewed by: Tonya
Format:Kindle
Published: Kristen Day
Source:Provided by author  Genre: Paranormal


About Book

Once you’ve been touched by darkness, it never leaves you…
Abandoned by her parents as an infant; seventeen year old Hannah spent her childhood wading through countless foster families until being adopted by the Whitmans three years ago.
Unfortunately, Atlanta’s high society wasn’t quite ready for Hannah…or the strange events that plague her.
Chilling visions of murder, unexplained hallucinations, and dark, mysterious guy who haunts her nightmares all culminate to set in motion a journey of self-discovery that will challenge everything she’s ever believed; not to mention her sanity.
Sent to live at The House of Lorelei on Bald Head Island, NC for ‘kids like her’, Hannah quickly realizes things are not what they seem. Her fellow ‘disturbed’ teens are actually the descendants of mythical Sea Gods and Goddesses. And so is she.
But when Finn, the ghost from her dreams, appears in the flesh; her nightmares become reality and her dark visions begin coming true. Inexplicably drawn to him, she can’t deny the dangerous hold he has on her heart. The deadly secrets he harbors will ultimately test her courage and push the boundaries of her love.

She must decide if she is ready to embrace the ancient legend she is prophesied to be a part of. The fate of all the descendants will forever depend upon it.



My Thoughts


What a truly amazing book – I have loved reading this book. Let’s just say that if I could make time stand still so I could just read and never have to put the book down until it was finished (though I hate that it comes to an end – as all books do). I really got into this book and while reading I really felt transported into the story, like I was right there watching every moment unfold before my eyes. To me an author is only as good as the story’s ability to draw you into it and making you the guest of honor that is there, but not there. Author Kristen Day has done that with Forsaken.
Let’s start with the main character her parents leave her as a baby at a police station in the middle of the night in the middle of a storm. Even though the storm is referring to the weather outside you can tell that it represent the storm within the hearts of the parents that are leaving their beautiful daughter for what one can only assume is a better life.

Flash forward and she is all grown up. Hannah Elizabeth Whitman or that is what the foster system named her. Her newest family comes from money and adopted her as a teenager. Though she has never truly felt like she fit in she does the best she can to make her adoptive mother happy. At a party something happens that for Hannah is normal but very embarrassing for her adoptive mother. So her adoptive mother sends her to a therapist. Not long after Hannah’s world is completely turned upside down.

Hannah’s therapists recommends sending her to a special school for people like her. Only she doesn’t know what that meant “people like her.” Coming to this school is a new start for her, a start where no one knows about her past, her life in foster care, the things she has seen and subject to and so with that fresh start Hannah decides to change her name and becomes Anastasia.

Anastasia is special as are all the rest of the students at this school. At this school she begins to learn where she really came from, she makes great friends and meets a very dark, very handsome guy. And even though they never met until this point she knows him, she has known him most of her life. Finn as she comes to learn has been in many of her dreams throughout her life. And not long after coming to the new school he saves her life. She soon learns what is special about everyone at this school, all of them are children of Gods or Goddesses. There are different types, each having something special about them based on who their parents were.

Anastasia’s friends in this book have such character. Her roommates Willow, Phoebe and Carmen each are so very different from each other but are also like “Stasia” as they end up calling her. Only Anastasia is a bit more special than the rest, and everyone but Anastasia knows this. A great bond grows between the girls from the moment Anastasia arrives and instantly they take to each other. I love Phoebe’s whit, she is funny, spunky and quirky and you can tell she loves to get under Carmen’s skin – but in a good way. Willow she is the motherly type of the group a healer and great in the kitchen. Carmen is the exotic one and has a bit of fire in her, attitude which you see throughout the book and I really loved. I really liked all three of these girls, so well written in the story and so easily like-able. And others are as easily dis likable such as Olivia one of the other girls from across the hall who had serious attitude and what seems like jealousy issues. But they always say never judge a book by its cover – Olivia is a good example of that.

There are moments throughout this book that your breath is completely taken away, you are laughing at Phoebe and her comments, holding your breath waiting to see if Carmen is just going to let her have one. There are moments that you are brought to tears, okay well I was brought to tears. You can feel the pain that ‘Stasia’ and her friends feel. The struggle, the laughter and joy. I could feel the struggle within Finn every time he was with Anastasia and she would ask a question. The author did such a great job writing the emotions into the book that they are right on the tip of the page and as you turn to it, it’s like it grabs hold of you and you feel what they are feeling within those pages.

The story flows from beginning to end, there is no down time, there is no okay let me skip a page or two so I can get to a good part, it’s all good from the very beginning when you are drawn into the parents pain of leaving their daughter to the very end when who and what Anastasia truly is and is truly meant for comes to light. You can close your eyes and hear the music play as Finn and Anastasia are dancing, you can imagine her wonder when she is battling the elements to save something very dear to her. You can feel the pain as she tries to save a friends life and you can feel the tender moments between her and Finn.
This is one book I thoroughly enjoyed reading and now I am going to close this review and head right into the next book of this series “Awaken”.



Monday, February 17, 2014

Book Blitz for True Fate by Shayna Varadeaux with Giveaway


Title: True Fate


Author: Shayna Varadeaux

Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy

Published: January 2014

Cover Design: KILA Designs




Book Blurb: 
Strange things have always happened to Nia, and until now she’s written them off as flukes. At nineteen she has seen her fair share of odd occurrences and just feels lucky.



When Nia unknowingly spoke a prophecy on her eighteenth birthday she freaked out her best friend, Rhea. Nia realizes she needs to find some answers. Rhea makes her promise to go and see her Great Aunt Amarie, but she isn’t sure if her crazy aunt could really help. 



Nia finds herself unexpectedly drawn to a stranger and begins dreaming of people who seem to know everything about her. 



They offer little in the way of information as to how and why. It all feels too real but Nia is unsure, at least until she wakes up with a trinket from the encounter.



When dreams and reality collide Nia will have to face dangers she never knew existed. Ready or not she will have to discover her True Fate.



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19498351-true-fate




Purchase Links:



About The Author: 
Shayna is a happily married mom of three teenagers and a native Texan. She is a highly addicted reader and an avid reviewer with a love for generating buzz for other authors. She writes Young Adult books and is currently working on the True Fate series as well as an untitled Contemporary YA book.



“Life is chaos and reading is my relaxation. Writing comes second only to my family and my music. I love playing the bass and singing backup vocals for my husband. A tattoo artist turned author, following my dream and loving it!"



"I am currently writing True Chaos, book 2 in the True Fate series! It is a hectic process being a writer, editor, formatter, blogger and self-promoter. Luckily I have my best friend who is also my supportive husband to cheer me on. While I enjoy the painful journey of becoming a self-published author! Happy reading!” - S.V.



Author Links:





Thursday, September 5, 2013

Born in Flames by Candace Knoebel Birthday Bash



 Book Info-
Title- Born in Flames
Series-Born in Flames Trilogy Book #1
By-Candace Knoebel
Publication Date-September 6, 2012


Blurb-

Red mirrored scales race up my arms as the haze of pain blurs my vision. My bones crack, breaking to realign. I scream. It is then that the realization of my unavoidable fate sinks in; I am of a dying race. I am dragon.

Aurora Megalos, orphaned and teetering on the edge of adulthood, thought finding her past would curb the sting of being an outcast. Having no memories of the time before she awoke on her foster mother’s doorstep, she yearns for the emptiness inside her to be filled. With her fellow orphaned best friend, Fenn, by her side, she has nothing to lose and everything to gain. But something powerful stirred within her that she couldn’t explain. Something wanted out.

In the dark of night, a crazed Seer, dubbed Mr.Creepy, erases everything she’s ever known with an impending prophecy. She now faces two paths. Return to her true home to protect a dying race against a growing evil, or stay hidden in the safety of our realm with a shot at a true love. With a vengeful Arch Enemy stopping at nothing to see her dead, she’s running out of time; a decision must be made. What would you choose?

Links:

Goodreads: 


Barnes & Noble-Nook:





About the Author-

Candace Knoebel had dreamed of being a dancer ever since she could remember. With a love of all things art, she saw herself moving to New York and pursuing her passion as an artist. But all that changed on October 10th, 2002 when she met the love of her life. Her dreams diverged and after marrying her high school sweetheart and having two beautiful children, she realized she missed her creative side.

Growing up alongside the Harry Potter series, Candace found herself missing the epicosity of a story that pulls you in and won’t let you go. In 2009, she began dreaming up characters that would mold her first novel. Through lunch breaks and late nights, after putting her kids to bed, she built a world where she could escape the ever-pressing days of an eight to five Purgatory. She found her calling in life and knew this was more than dancing could’ve ever meant to her.

Once complete in 2010, she began the grueling process of finding a publisher. With relentless determination, she was finally able to realize her dream in December of 2011 when 48fourteen offered her a publishing contract. With a HUGE yes and a happy dance, she  continues her Trilogy.

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