Recommendations of March

There are many good books in March, but here are what I recommend from this month's reading:

1. Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices #3) by Cassandra Clare

Why I recommend it: 

Cassandra Clare writes some of the most amazing Young Adult novels. I got hooked into the Shadowhunter world soon after she had finish writing City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1). With this stunning finish to The Infernal Devices, this series now is probably my favourite YA series. This book explores a wide range of values and emotions, and also what it takes to find happiness when everything seems to set against your wishes. The writing is exquisite and flowing, and the characters are so real and easy to relate to. I experience every ounce of feelings of the characters and feel the pain, the love, the happiness, the fear and the anger everytime. If you haven't read this series, I highly recommend it. My review of Clockwork Princess will be coming in the next few days. It's so good that I'm re-reading it right now! 

2. Fragments (Partials #2) by Dan Wells

Why I recommend it:

This book was one of my most anticipated YA releases of the year, and true to my expectations, it did not disappoint. Human morals, and the choice to do right or wrong wars with each other in this book. Humanity is challenged in every part of Kira's journey and she and her friends will experience many impossible decisions on their way to find peace and the solution to their problems. What is right? To sacrifice a few from a race without their permission to sustain the livelihood of thousands of another race even though it's wrong, or to save the few and let all the thousands die? This book is gripping and a Sci-fi journey you don't want to pass. In my opinion, it may be even better than Partials (Partials #1). Once again, I will endeavour to put my review up after Easter :)

Kings of Charleston Blog Tour: Excerpt + Giveaway

Happy Easter everyone!!! Today, I'm the Easter stop for The Kings of Charleston Blog Tour. For the rest of the tour click here. At my stop there will be an excerpt from the book The Kings of Charleston by Kat H. Clayton and a tour wide giveaway of a signed copy of the book plus a Kindle Paperwhite. This is open to US/CAN/UK followers only. Enjoy!

The Kings of Charleston by Kat H. Clayton

Series: The Kings of Charleston Series, #1
Publication: July 10th 2012
Genre: YA Romantic Suspense

Synopsis:
Casper Whitley is forced to move to Charleston, South Carolina where she’ll be the new kid her senior year of high school. Casper’s upset about the move until she meets the Roman family’s gorgeous son, Cal, but there’s a problem. A mystery surrounds him which can be summed up in one word…Kythera. Never heard of it? Neither has Casper until she finds the word tattooed on cars, paintings and all her new friends.

After Casper’s life is threatened, someone is forced to tell the truth about her parents, the Romans and Kythera’s motives for her being in Charleston. Once the truth is revealed, she must decide whether to protect her family and Kythera’s secrets or walk away from everything she has ever known.

GOODREADS: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15725579-the-kings-of-charleston

PURCHASE: 

--Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008EEEF46

--B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-kings-of-charleston-kat-h-clayton/1111794261?ean=9780985744205

--Createspace: https://www.createspace.com/3899281

--IndieBound: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780985744205

AUTHOR BIO

Kat has been a writer her entire life, but never pursued a writing career until the characters from a short story she wrote in high school refused to go away. Finally, she sat down and wrote their story which would became The Kings of Charleston series.



Kat has been an avid reader her entire life. She enjoys all genres, but particularly Mystery and Young Adult. Mary Higgins Clark is one of her favorite authors who inspired her love of mysteries. 



When she isn't writing, Kat loves to travel, try out new recipes and hang out with her husband. She is originally from Kentucky, but currently resides in South Georgia with her husband, a cat named Frank and a dog named Lil.

Author Links:

Website: http://kathclayton.com/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6431238.Kat_H_Clayton

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KatHClayton

Excerpt from book:

Cal swore under his breath and pulled to the side.

I was a mess. I had never been pulled over, not even as a passenger.

Cal pushed a button and the window slid down slowly with a whoosh. I turned to look at the approaching officer. He had a flashlight in his hand that he swept across the side of the car. Once he reached the front of the car, he paused at the front wheel and stood motionless for several seconds. I leaned over the console to see what the holdup was. The officer’s face had drained of all its color.

“Can I help you, Officer?” Cal said.

I hit Cal on the shoulder and mouthed, What are you doing? He shrugged his shoulders.

“Oh, well, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize who you were,” the officer said with an uneasy laugh. Why would he be sorry for pulling over a seventeen-year-old in a Mercedes?

“No problem, you new to the force?” Cal said in a conversational tone. My mouth dropped open.

“Yes, I am. I didn’t get a good look at your vehicle till now. Hope you have a good night,” he said. The officer walked back to his vehicle and drove off. Cal turned on his blinker and merged back into the flow of traffic.

“What just happened?” I asked. I was shocked and confused by how the officer had treated Cal. You would have thought he was a movie star or a diplomat with immunity to the law.

“Ah, nothing, I just know the police pretty well,” he responded, smiling to himself. There was obviously more to the story and it had to do with whatever the officer had seen on the front wheel of his car. What could he have seen? I was dying to find out.

“You have a lot of run-ins with the law?”

He leaned his head over to me with a playful expression on his face. I felt tiny butterflies develop in the pit of my stomach. “Me? Nah, they have run-ins with me from time to time. I have to straighten them out, you know?”

He turned the blinker on and we entered a residential neighborhood. A few minutes later, we pulled up to a restaurant at the end of a secluded street. Cal pulled the car into a parallel parking space across the street and got out of the car. I began to open my door, but he waved his finger at me. He opened the door for me and gestured for me to take his hand. After a moment’s hesitation, I stepped out of the car, my hand in his strong grip.

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There Comes A Prophet Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway

Welcome to my stop of the There Comes A Prophet blog tour! To follow the rest of tour, click here for the tour schedule. Today at my stop, I will be doing a review, thanks to Xpresso Book Tours for organising and Double Dragon Publishing for providing me with a hardcopy of the book. There will also be a giveaway of one hardcopy of There Comes A Prophet by David Litwack for US followers, or one ecopy of the book for International follows. So yes, there's something for everyone! :) Enjoy!

There Comes A Prophet by David Litwack

Publication date: July 9th 2012
by Double Dragon Publishing
Genre: YA Dystopian

Synopsis:
Who among us will cast aside a comfortable existence and risk death to follow a dream?

A world kept peaceful for a thousand years by the magic of the ruling vicars. But a threat lurks from a violent past. Wizards from the darkness have hidden their sorcery in a place called the keep and left a trail of clues that have never been solved.

Nathaniel has grown up longing for more but unwilling to challenge the vicars. Until his friend Thomas is taken for a teaching, the mysterious coming-of-age ritual. Thomas returns but with his dreams ripped away. When Orah is taken next, Nathaniel tries to rescue her and ends up in the prisons of Temple City. There he meets the first keeper of the ancient clues. But when he seeks the keep, what he finds is not magic at all.

If he reveals the truth, the words of the book of light might come to pass:

“If there comes among you a prophet saying ‘Let us return to the darkness,’ you shall stone him, because he has sought to thrust you away from the light.”

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15745772-there-comes-a-prophet

Purchase: 

--Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/There-Comes-A-Prophet-ebook/dp/B008RCQE1C/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1353118684&sr=1-1

--Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/there-comes-a-prophet-david-litwack/1112205972?ean=9781554049967

--The Book Depository: http://www.bookdepository.com/There-Comes-Prophet-David-Litwack/9781771150149?a_aid=xreads

Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43girNzSFsw&feature=player_embedded

AUTHOR BIO
The urge to write first struck when working on a newsletter at a youth encampment in the woods of northern Maine. It may have been the night when lightning flashed at sunset followed by northern lights rippling after dark. Or maybe it was the newsletter's editor, a girl with eyes the color of the ocean. But he was inspired to write about the blurry line between reality and the fantastic.

Using two fingers and lots of white-out, he religiously typed five pages a day throughout college and well into his twenties. Then life intervened. He paused to raise two sons and pursue a career, in the process becoming a well-known entrepreneur in the software industry, founding several successful companies. When he found time again to daydream, the urge to write returned. There Comes a Prophet is his first  novel in this new stage of life.

David and his wife split their time between Cape Cod, Florida and anywhere else that catches their fancy. He no longer limits himself to five pages a day and is thankful every keystroke for the invention of the word processor.

Author Links:
David's Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

My review:

Rating: 3 stars

The first reason There Comes A Prophet caught my attention was its sci-fi genre. I’ve always liked the science fiction with the authors’ wide imaginations while founding on at least limited science and technology of the present world. There Comes A Prophet presents an entirely different world combined with a touch of fantasy. Religion plays an important role of indulging the reader to fall into the world it is set in. People in this book worships “Light” and “Dark” instead of any particular god. Light is represented by the Keep temple who is supposed to provide protection and resources for its people. Vicars are introduced as ambassadors of religion travelling to all parts of the world to oversea believers.

One theme I found very true and outstanding is that even good beginnings lead by good intentions can result in corruption and evil overtime. The development of modern day bureaucracy corruption is reflected upon the power-hungry vicars who do not keep the best intentions for their people at heart. However, exactly what happens I will not disclose here so you can read and find out yourself. But our three brave main characters realise that something was amiss in supposedly peaceful reign of the temple. The determination to find the truth leads them on an adventure away from home.

The three best friends Nathaniel, Orah and Thomas are three characters I admire and felt close to heart. I could connect with the characters rather well and they remind me slightly of my friends and I. They helped each other and held their friendship true through many impossible situations and believed in each other. Their bravery and hunger for knowledge and truth is something worth admiring. Not many people will deal in justice when they should and the three best friends’ journey to find truth also felt like a journey for justice to me. Each of these three characters is unique and different from each other. Nathaniel is the dreamer of the three, he has wonderful ideas and the occasion explosive realizations. He is a good mediator between Orah and Thomas. Orah is the smart one who is observant and full of wisdom. She seemed older than her age and has the most caution even though she is the youngest of the three. On the other hand, initially Thomas seems to be not such a bright young man, more thick in the head and focused on his immediate wants and needs. He seems so young, bordering on childish. He is the trouble-maker. Though Orah helped him with school and other things as they were growing up, sometimes she is exasperated with him. All three characters grow through the story and build up qualities they did not initially have. Thomas especially, changes a lot with the course of the plot. The Nathaniel, Orah and Thomas at the end of the book is not who I’ve meet in the first few pages. Me, as the reader also grow with the characters and gain more values and qualities by the end of the book.

The setting of Little Pond as a backward country-side town without modern technology and the laidback style of living is beautiful and surreal. The plot moved a quite a fast pace, keeping the reader interested. The author did a very job at concealing the mystery until the end, stringing the reader along, curious and wanting. Overall, the story was intriguing and full of vivid imagination and action.

However, it was a bit hard for me to get into the story in the beginning and took me quite a while to get use to the writing style. Litwack can pay more attention to the details and expand the descriptions of actions, surrounding and characters at many places. For example, I like to imagine the characters in my head as I read, yet it was hard for me to imagine Orah until quite a while into the book. Although I can connect to the story and its characters relatively well, I still feel like there is a glass wall in between the actions and me. I couldn’t quite be in the story myself. These little things added together affected my rating of the book.

Overall, this book is entertaining and full of wisdom. I would recommend it to all sci-fi fans who don’t mind a bit of a lapse on the romance department. A very good debut novel.

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Rapture Blog Tour

Welcome to my stop of the Rapture Blog tour. Author Phillip W Simpson will be doing a guest post here at my blog, there will also be a tour wide giveaway of 3 print copies of Rapture and 1 print copy of Tribulation. Thanks for stopping and I hope you enjoy it!

Guest Post by Phillip W Simpson

Pet peeves of the publishing industry

In the course of my writing career, I’ve had almost 50 books published by mainstream publishers. Publishers include Penguin, Macmillan, Pearson, Oxford University Press and Cengage. These, admittedly, are mostly educational books for children and books to help teachers teach the writing process.

In terms of my commercial fiction, I’ve recently become an indie writer. My Rapture Trilogy was published by Pear Jam books, a small publisher based in New Zealand. I got my rights back in January, 2013 and decided to go Indie because of the trouble a small publisher faces in terms of distribution. They struggle to get their books in mainstream bookstores. Many of these bookstores are reluctant to take on stock not produced by a major publisher.

Not only that, but my books are difficult to buy in print where they need to be – the U.S.  The Rapture Trilogy is set in the States and I believe the content appeals more to American audiences than any other. It’s also difficult to get reviews in popular review spots such as newspapers, magazines etc. I had many reviews by bloggers and in all fairness, bloggers target my demographic much better. It’s a fantastic way to get word out to potential readers. But still – it would be nice to see my books in the review pages in the Sunday papers.

There are so many good books out there by small presses and indie authors but many people have never heard of them. I believe the industry is changing however – for the better.  Indie and self published authors have a lot more control now, especially with the advent of the e-book and the ability of these authors to sell their books on-line. Mainstream review sources are starting to sit up and take notice but it’s still very difficult. Kirkus, for instance, offers a review service for Indie authors but it’ll cost you. From memory, I think it costs around $500 for a Kirkus review. I know it’s impractical for them to review every book but it would be nice if they offered the same free service they offer to mainstream publications. Perhaps when a book has received enough attention, Kirkus could produce a free review. Maybe the criteria could be a certain amount of reviews from bloggers or a certain amount of ratings from sites like Goodreads. Food for thought.

Regardless, I have fully embraced my Indie status and I’m looking forward to publishing my next few books myself. With Apocalypse, I will have five novels available as e-books. I’ve got one chapter book that I want to put up as well as two picture books. In addition, I’m currently working on my sixth novel. It’s going to be a busy year!

Thank you for this awesome post Phillip! Now here is some information about the book and the author.

Ya Dystopian

Date Published: 12/1/2011

The Rapture has occurred - the end of the world. The faithful have risen up to Heaven.

Those left behind are in a living hell. Armed only with his swords and his wit, a teenage boy

wanders this post-apocalyptic world alone, separated forever from everyone he loves. Cursed

by his demonic heritage, he must now embark on a quest that will take him across the US to

the City of Angels.

Author Bio:

Phillip W. Simpson is an author of mostly children's books - both fiction and non-fiction.

As well as being a writer, he is an elementary school teacher. Career highlights include being in the army, gaining a Masters in Archaeology, owning a comic shop, becoming obsessed with martial arts and oriental weapons and turning down a job at the British museum.

His YA novel RAPTURE (the first in the Rapture trilogy) was released Sept 1st, 2011 by Pear Jam books. RAPTURE is a dystopian/post-apocalyptic story about the end of the world featuring demons, angels and a half demon protagonist caught in the middle. RAPTURE was shortlisted for the Sir Julius Vogel award for best Youth novel.

Book 2, TRIBULATION, was released in December, 2012. The final book, APOCALYPSE, will be out early 2013.

On a personal note, he is married to Rose, has a son (Jack) and two border terriers, Whiskey and Raffles. He loves fishing, reading, football (soccer) and single malt Whiskeys.

Webite info:

http://www.rapturetrilogy.com
http://www.phillipwsimpson.com
http://www.phillipwsimpson.co.nz

Blog:

http://www.phillipwsimpson.com/blog.html

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/PhillipWSimpson.Author
Follow me on Twitter!
http://twitter.com/#!/PhillipWSimpson
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5167118.Phillip_William_Simpson

Buy Links 

Smashwords author page:

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/authorphillipwsimpson

Amazon:

Rapture (kindle version)

http://www.amazon.com/Rapture-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00B53IZHQ/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1359229064&sr=8-9&keywords=Phillip+W.+Simpson

Tribulation (kindle version)

http://www.amazon.com/Tribulation-Rapture-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00B5DEZ1Q/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1359229064&sr=8-12&keywords=Phillip+W.+Simpson

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Surrender You Love Book Buzz

To help J. C. Reed celebrate the release of her book Surrender Your Love, I'm going to do a quick post here about her book and J. C. Reed is also doing a giveaway of a $50 gift card plus one ecopy of her book. Enjoy!

Surrender Your Love

Release date: March 15th, 2013

Meeting Jett was like lightning. Dangerous. Better left untouched. And better forgotten. But lightning always strikes twice.

Brooke Stewart, a realtor in New York, doesn’t do relationships. When she’s sent to a remote estate to finalize a real estate deal, she discovers her new boss is no other than the guy she left naked in bed.

Sexy, dangerously handsome, and arrogant Jett Mayfield attracts trouble, and women, like a lightning rod. But the night he meets Brooke he gets more than he bargained for. The green-eyed millionaire playboy isn’t used to taking no for an answer, and he isn’t about to start now.

When he proposes two months of no strings sex, Brooke is intrigued and accepts his proposal. Little does she know Jett’s determined to claim the one woman he can’t have, pulling her deeper into his dangerous world.

A man who doesn't take 'no' for an answer.

A woman afraid to surrender to love.

Two lives that are about to cross...and secrets laid bare.

Author links:

http://jcreedauthor.blogspot.com

http://twitter.com/jcreedauthor

http://www.facebook.com/pages/JC-Reed/295864860535849

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March New Release Giveaway Hop

So for the March New Releases Giveaway Hop, the winner can win a choice of one of the listed books or a $13 NZD to The Book Depository. This giveaway is opening internationally as long as The Book Depository ships to you. My usual giveaway rules apply. Good luck!

You can win one of the following March releases:

Mila 2.0

Strands of Bronze and Gold

Poison

Clockwork Princess

Let the Sky Fall

Spellcaster

Unremembered

The Nightmare Affair

When We Wake

If You Find Me

Requiem

Finn Finnegan

Sufacing

Panic

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Recommendations of February

Oops, I haven't been reviewing for so long! I apologise for leaving so many of you hanging there but life is just hectic at the moment. I have so many papers due in and I haven't been able to read much this year. But, I will definitely catch up on all of my to-review books and type something in the upcoming few days. Anyway, what do I recommend from books I've read in February?

So, the first book I recommend is:

Splintered (Splintered #1) by A. G. Howard

Reason I liked it:
This book is filled with vivid imagination and attention drawing action. I love Howard's wonderland and how she manages to use Alice In Wonderland as a spin off point. The attention to detail is stunning and the characters are lovable. I'm so happy to hear that there will be a sequel! My review is to come soon, but this is definitely not a book you want to miss out on.

The book I recommend is:

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFevers

Reason I liked it:
I've read this book quite a while ago, and then recently I re-read it again. This is a book that I can read over and over again without getting bored. The assassin aspect of it is well thought out and full of twists and turns (those of you who have read my reviews before will know that I love assassin stories :P). The emotions behind the words can be felt deeply by the reader. As a reader, I was also able to connect to the characters and relate to them. Strongly recommended if you like assassin stories too!

Conflicting Hearts Book Blitz

Conflicting Hearts

Contemporary Romance

Date Published: November 2012

Synopsis:

Rachel Hayward hoped to have a quiet thirtieth birthday alone. Instead, fate had different plans.
Caught in traffic and late for work, she can do nothing except wait for the freeway gridlock to ease. A three-car pileup has caused the snarl. Just as cars begin to move at a faster clip, Rachel takes her eyes off the road to gawk at the accident and rear-ends the car in front of her.
Sick over having ruined her day, she lowers her head onto the steering wheel and waits for the driver to begin a tirade over her stupidity. Instead, a kind man taps on her window showing genuine concern about her welfare. The brief colliding encounter suddenly starts a relationship between two strangers that takes off under odd circumstances.
When the couple becomes intimate, their relationship turns into a conflicting set of desires and needs. Rachel is bound by a shameful, dark childhood. After she falls in love with the handsome Ian Richards, she is faced with the decision to leave him or finally confront her demons to obtain the one thing in life she's always needed--healing from the sexual abuse she endured as a little girl.

EXCERPT

Ian slowly turns me around so that I’m facing him. We’re nose to nose. Our bodies are touching front to front. This is not good, or maybe it is good. He doesn’t say a thing, except to look at me with a smoldering gaze. A second later, he lazily moves his eyes toward my lips.

I’m frozen. I look at him with half anticipation and half panic. He’s going to kiss me; I know it. His intentions are clearly expressed in his blue eyes, which have turned a shade darker. I’m losing it. Hurriedly, I remind him of his words to fend off the advance.

“Uh, I thought you wanted to be just friends?”

A look of admiration sweeps across his face. He gently brings his hand up to my forehead and brushes a few strands of hair out of my eyes. Ian is silent, but it’s obvious he is thinking this through. It’s driving me crazy being close to his body.

“You want more?” I whisper, trying to get him to say something.

“Do you?”

He answers with a question. It’s annoying. “I asked you first,” I reply, not cracking a smile or giving away my heart pounding in my chest. I can’t look at him any longer. I close my eyes, and silently ask God, who I’ve ignored for years, to help me.

Then I feel the warmth of his breath approach. He circles my lips with his and gives me a long, tender kiss. Sweet Jesus. He tastes so delicious! I hope the breath mint I popped in my mouth a half hour ago is still working. Eventually, he pulls away, and I open my eyes.

“Does that answer your question?”

Read Chapter 1 Online via a Flip Book:

Here

Author Bio:

J. D. Burrows is a pen named used for contemporary romance written by Vicki Hopkins. She has authored four other historical fiction/romance novels. Her recent historical (Dark Persuasion) won the 2012 USA Best Book Awards Finalist for Fiction Romance.The author lives in the rainy Pacific Northwest with a pesky cat who refuses to let her sleep in. She enjoys traveling to England, researching her English ancestry, finding long-lost relatives from the Holland lineage, and creating stories that touch the hearts of women.For information about her historical romance, visit http://vickihopkins.com

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Purchase Links

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