The Sound of Letting Go

The Sound of Letting Go by Stasia Ward Kehoe

Publisher: Penguin Group
Release Date: February 1st/2014
Pages: N/A
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What It's About!

For sixteen years, Daisy has been good. A good daughter, helping out with her autistic younger brother uncomplainingly. A good friend, even when her best friend makes her feel like a third wheel. When her parents announce they’re sending her brother to an institution—without consulting her—Daisy’s furious, and decides the best way to be a good sister is to start being bad. She quits jazz band and orchestra, slacks in school, and falls for bad-boy Dave.

But one person won’t let Daisy forget who she used to be: Irish exchange student and brilliant musician Cal. Does she want the bad boy or the prodigy? Should she side with her parents or protect her brother? How can she know when to hold on and when—and how—to let go?

 

The Elite

The Elite (The Selection #2) by Kiera Cass

Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: April 23rd/2013
Pages: 323
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What It's About!

Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Iléa.

America still isn’t sure where her heart lies. When she’s with Maxon, she’s swept up in their new and breathless romance, and can’t dream of being with anyone else. But whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, and is overcome with memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over—and time is running out for America to decide.

Just when America is sure she’s made her choice, a devastating loss makes her question everything again. And while she’s struggling to imagine her future, the violent rebels that are determined to overthrow the monarchy are growing stronger and their plans could destroy her chance at any kind of happy ending.

Review

I liked The Elite almost as much as The Selection, only in this second book America for the life of her just could NOT make up her mind about what she wanted. Which boy she wanted, which girl she could and couldn't trust, whether she wanted to even stay in the Selection. Like come ON girl!

I loved America in the first book, she was a great character. She was very un-decisive in this book which pretty much drove me insane by the end. I wasn't even sure if I was Team Maxon or Team Aspen until the last half of the book. Aspen just started getting on my nerves with his unsupportive attitude about America being the Princess and whatnot.

There was a lot of excitement and shocking moments throughout The Elite, ones I really wasn't expecting. I wish there had been more details and more happening with the rebel stuff, they were so short that they almost might as well have never happened at all. I can understand why we didn't see more into them though, for we got to see how America and everyone else reacted to everything.

Overall it was a great book, even though America was a bit annoying with not being able to decide anything. It really made me feel a lot of different emotions whether I was upset, sad or shocked, I really enjoyed it a lot and can't wait for the next book.

Rating 

 

Guest Post: How Book Covers Are Created

How Book Covers Are Created

By Levi Stack

While skimming over book covers on shelves or scrolling through them online, have you ever wondered how these works of art are created? How illustrators collaborate authors? How artists reinvent the heart and life of a story – only in a different medium? I’m writing to give you an inside look at that unique process. I was lucky enough to work side-by-side with my illustrator, Owen William Weber, so you’ll get to see firsthand what went into the artwork of my award-winning novel, The Silent Deal.

Here’s a summary to give you a feel for the story:

When Viktor and Romulus, two peasant boys in the Russian Empire, dig too deep into their town’s strange past, they awaken the wrath of a mysterious overlord. On a quest for answers (and survival), the blood brothers navigate gambling parlors, Gyspy camps, and dark forests full of wild animals and men alike. But can they escape the deathly experiments their foe is creating in Staryi Castle?

So you get the idea – this is an Old World story, stuffed with thieves and beggars all the way to the fortune-tellers and fire-jugglers of the Romani Gypsies. This is important to recognize because it’s essential to match the time period of the story to the appearance of the cover. If I had written a flashy modern story, I might have a pop art style cover, but because I wrote historical fiction, I wanted an older medium, and an oil painting seemed like the perfect choice. 

This is where Owen William Weber came in. He’s an excellent painter, and after viewing his gallery, I immediately wanted him to do the cover art. Because the book deals so much with gambling, I requested the book’s cover resemble a king of spades playing card, with Viktor and Romulus, the two main characters, displayed as the king figures. Owen read my descriptions of the characters, and came back with several potential designs.

We agreed the fourth design was the most balanced, so Owen did a more detailed sketch, including attributes of both the characters. Romulus keeps a wolf as a pet, and carries blades throughout the story. Viktor is the son of a miner, and has to dig for buried items in certain scenes, hence the shovel. Both boys experiment with explosive weapons, as their enemy has banned firearms in their town.

I loved the sketch, but we both agreed that because Viktor and Romulus are serfs, their clothing needed to be rougher and less detailed. They also needed to look a bit younger. Owen carried out one more sketch, and this time it was perfect, save for the fact that we favored Romulus’ face from the first sketch.

The last step was for Owen to actually complete the oil painting. We agreed that rich reds and greens would give the book an older feel, so he handled the color scheme, and finished the work. After the typography was carried out, the cover art was finalized. 

 

I hope you enjoyed this inside look at how a book cover is created! If you want to read The Silent Deal, it’s available on Amazon. Or if you want to learn more about me, check out my website, www.levistack.com. Happy reading!

 

A Shade of Vampire

A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forrest

Release Date: December 12th/2013
Pages: 149
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What It's About!

On the evening of Sofia Claremont's seventeenth birthday, she is sucked into a nightmare from which she cannot wake. A quiet evening walk along a beach brings her face to face with a dangerous pale creature that craves much more than her blood.

She is kidnapped to an island where the sun is eternally forbidden to shine. An island uncharted by any map and ruled by the most powerful vampire coven on the planet. She wakes here as a slave, a captive in chains. Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is the one selected out of hundreds of girls to join the harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal Prince.

Despite his addiction to power and obsessive thirst for her blood, Sofia soon realizes that the safest place on the island is within his quarters, and she must do all within her power to win him over if she is to survive even one more night.

Will she succeed? ...or is she destined to the same fate that all other girls have met at the hands of the Novaks?

Review

                           A copy was provided by Bella Forrest for review

 
I ended up really liking this book in the end, but at first I wasn't too sure about it. The story started off pretty quickly, the author wasted no time getting right to the point. At first I didn't like it because I like when the books I read have some sort of background or explaining of the characters lives and whatnot, at least within the first chapter, but once I got further into the book, there were things told throughout the book that made me feel like I wasn't so lost like I was in the beginning.

The book as a whole felt like one huge whirlwind when I was finished it. Everything happened so quickly but was also well-paced at the same time, I really enjoyed it. Sofia was kind of a hard character to relate to and figure out in the beginning. I started to like her more as the story progressed though. Derek is the other main character, whom I really liked right off the bat. He was gentle but commanding, and willing to do just about anything to protect Sofia. Even though I finished the book a couple days ago, I can't stop swooning over Derek, he's just so hot in that fictional boyfriend way.

I loved the way the story had developed from beginning to end. I don't really feel like any of the characters grew or changed much, but there also wasn't a whole lot of time that seemed to go by, so we may see some character growing in the second book, which I would kind of like to see. 

Rating 

Lullaby

Lullaby (Watersong #2) by Amanda Hocking

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release Date: November 27th/2012
Pages: 290
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What It's About!

Harper only wanted a safe, normal life. But when her younger sister Gemma runs off with a dangerous clique of beautiful girls, Penn, Thea, and Lexi, everything changes. Vowing to get her sister back no matter what the cost, Harper must face dangers unlike any she's ever experienced. Fortunately, she has Daniel by her side, a gorgeous guy who's devoted to helping her find her sister—and who's immune to the girls' dark powers.

While Harper searches for her sister, Gemma struggles to adjust to her new life.  Gemma's powers are growing by the day, and the longer she lives with her new "sisters," the harder it is to resist entering their magical world.  It's a realm both dark and beautiful, and where she's plagued by strange hungers and unspeakable needs.  Just as she's drifting far away from her old life,  Harper and Daniel find her...but no one can deny how much she's changed.  All she wants is to return to her family and the mortal world, but how can she do that when she's become something else entirely—and will they still love her once they learn the truth?

Review

Lullaby was a pretty quick, mediocre read for me. I don't know if it's because of the other books I've been reading that made this book just ok in comparison, but it just didn't keep me interested for very long. Some parts were better than others, but it was pretty slow up until the very end when there's actually something going on. Otherwise I feel like there could have been a lot more that happened, a lot of it felt like everything was over-described just so there were words on the pages so they weren't blank.

There was a lot more Daniel in this book, which I really liked. He's the character that most grabbed and kept my attention, the others were just...meh. Once again, the book is written from both Gemma and Harper's points of view. While I was reading it, it was a bit tricky sometimes to tell which one was actually telling the story, since it's written in third person and sometimes they'd both be in the same scene.

There were definitely parts I liked, like the very end and a few parts in between. Overall it's a good book, especially since it's about mermaids and boys and whatnot, I just hope the next book is more action-packed and interesting.

Rating 

 

June Releases

Here are a few of the releases set to come out this month! I'm most looking forward to Sarah Dessen's new novel, I've read and loved all her books, so I'm super excited for this one!

Tidal - 4th

PODS - 4th

The Impossibility of Tomorrow - 4th

Siege and Storm - 4th

Tempest Revealed - 4th

The Moon & More - 4th 

You Look Different In Real Life - 4th

In The After - 25th

♥Cover Candie of the Month♥

Descendant (Starling #2) by Lesley Livingston

Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: August 27th/2013
Pages: 336
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What It's About!

The last thing Mason Starling remembers is the train crossing a bridge. An explosion . . . a blinding light . . . then darkness. Now she is alone, stranded in Asgard—the realm of Norse legend—and the only way for her to get home is to find the Spear of Odin, a powerful relic left behind by vanished gods.

The Fennrys Wolf knows all about Asgard. He was once trapped there. And he’ll do whatever it takes to find the girl who’s stolen his heart and bring her back—even if it means a treacherous descent into the Underworld. But time is running out, and Fenn knows something Mason doesn’t: If she takes up the Spear, she’ll set in motion a terrible prophecy. And she won’t just return to her world . . . she’ll destroy it.

In this pulse-pounding sequel to Starling, Lesley Livingston delivers another electrifying blend of nonstop action and undeniable romance that will leave readers breathless.

Dare You To

Dare You To (Pushing the Limits #2) by Katie McGarry

Publisher: Harlequin Teen 
Release Date: May 28th/2013 
Pages: 462
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What It's About!

If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....

Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the constant dares to do crazy things. The craziest? Asking out the Skater girl who couldn't be less interested in him.

But what begins as a dare becomes an intense attraction neither Ryan nor Beth expected. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image risks his dreams-and his life-for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all...

Review

ARC received from Harlequin Teen via Netgalley for review

Wow. Just..wow.

I had read and loved Pushing The Limits when it had come out, so I was pretty sure I was going to love Dare You To also, but I didn't expect to love it this much! I loved it 10x more than Pushing The Limits. I don't know why, I think it's because I liked the characters more, like Ryan...*swoon*

The story of Ryan and Beth had started out from a dare and slowly it became more than a dare and eventually more than friendship. I loved how well paced Dare To You was, a lot of authors rush everything, but Katie McGarry really knows how to write so you feel like you can relate to the story and its characters. Ryan and Beth were so well developed as characters, that they felt like real people. I got so wrapped up in the world of Ryan and Beth that I almost went through withdrawals after I finished the book.

Everything the characters had to go through, all the obstacles they had to go around, truths and lies they had to discover, made the book really interesting and realistic. I love that about Katie McGarry's books, she knows how to bring words on paper to life like they're actually real. When the characters came to terms with something that they had been fighting against for the entire book, I felt like I did too. Dare You To was so amazingly good! I can't even think of anything else to say without giving anything/everything away for the people who haven't read it yet, so it'll just have to be a shorter review than I planned on! 

Rating 

Dance of Shadows

Dance of Shadows by Yelena Black

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books
Release Date: February 12th/2013
Pages: 469
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What It's About!

Dancing with someone is an act of trust. Elegant and intimate; you're close enough to kiss, close enough to feel your partner's heartbeat. But for Vanessa, dance is deadly – and she must be very careful who she trusts . . .

Vanessa Adler attends an elite ballet school – the same one her older sister, Margaret, attended before she disappeared. Vanessa feels she can never live up to her sister's shining reputation. But Vanessa, with her glorious red hair and fair skin, has a kind of power when she dances – she loses herself in the music, breathes different air, and the world around her turns to flames . . .

Soon she attracts the attention of three men: gorgeous Zep, mysterious Justin, and the great, enigmatic choreographer Josef Zhalkovsky. When Josef asks Vanessa to dance the lead in the Firebird, she has little idea of the danger that lies ahead – and the burning forces about to be unleashed

Review

The book itself got 3.5 stars, but I gave it 5 because the cover is so gorgeous. Especially when you see it in person, some of the rose petals are shiny :)

The first quarter of the book started out really good and totally sucked me into the world of ballerinas and dance and the whole mystery of the missing sister that turned into being a whole bunch of missing girls. I really thought this book had amazing potential, but the author just didn't quite seem to reach the stars when it came to the actual story. The whole idea of the well-known dance academy having girls going missing was really good. Then slowly, the story just sort of petered out like a flame that starts out really big and bright and slowly goes out until there's almost nothing left.

In the last few chapters things picked up again, but didn't really seem to totally fit with the mystery the story had started out with. It did, but it didn't at the same time, but maybe my expectations were too high..

At first, I really liked the main character, Vanessa, though the deeper I got into the book, the more I disliked her. She was kind of flat and boring and didn't really use her brain much. There would be all these clues that practically painted a picture, and I thought I, as the reader, realized what was happening because she did, but then a few pages after she would finally put 2 and 2 together after asking a million stupid questions. It just really started irritating me by the time I was close to the end of the book. I think the only character I really liked was Justin. He felt the most realistic. Then there was Zep, the "bad guy", which was pretty much obvious right from the very beginning he would turn out to be a creep, but of course, Vanessa "had no idea" until the very end.

It's not a bad book, especially if you like ballet and not quite fully formed characters mixed with some mystery.

Rating 

Between The Lives

Between The Lives by Jessica Shirvington

Publisher: HarperCollins Australia 
Release Date: May 1st 2013
Pages: 336
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What It's About! 

Above all else, though I try not to think about it, I know which life I prefer. And every night when I Cinderella myself from one life to the next a very small, but definite, piece of me dies. The hardest part is that nothing about my situation has ever changed. There is no loophole.

Until now, that is...

For as long as she can remember, Sabine has lived two lives. Every 24 hours she Shifts to her ′other′ life - a life where she is exactly the same, but absolutely everything else is different: different family, different friends, different social expectations. In one life she has a sister, in the other she does not. In one life she′s a straight-A student with the perfect boyfriend, in the other she′s considered a reckless delinquent. Nothing about her situation has ever changed, until the day when she discovers a glitch: the arm she breaks in one life is perfectly fine in the other.

With this new knowledge, Sabine begins a series of increasingly risky experiments which bring her dangerously close to the life she′s always wanted... But just what - and who - is she really risking?

The Boyfriend App

The Boyfriend App by Katie Sise

Publisher: Balzer & Bray 
Release Date: April 30th/2013
Pages: 320
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What It's About!

In The Boyfriend App by Katie Sise, super-smart, somewhat geeky Audrey McCarthy can’t wait to get out of high school. Her father’s death and the transformation of her one-time BFF, Blake Dawkins, into her worst nightmare have her longing for the new start college will bring.

But college takes money. So Audrey decides she has to win the competition for the best app designed by a high schooler—and the $200,000 that comes with it. She develops something she calls the Boyfriend App, and suddenly she’s the talk of the school and getting kissed by the hottest boys around. But can the Boyfriend App bring Audrey true love?

♥Cover Candie of the Month♥

Our Song by Jordanna Fraiberg

Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: May 2nd/2013
Pages: 352
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What It's About!

Olive Bell has spent her entire life in the beautiful suburb of Vista Valley, with a picture-perfect home, a loving family, and a seemingly perfect boyfriend. But after a near-fatal car accident, she’s haunted by a broken heart and a melody that she cannot place.

Then Olive meets Nick. He’s dark, handsome, mysterious . . . and Olive feels connected to him in a way she can’t explain. Is there such a thing as fate? The two embark on a whirlwind romance—until Nick makes a troubling confession.

Heartbroken, Olive pieces together what really happened the night of her accident and arrives at a startling revelation. Only by facing the truth can she uncover the mystery behind the song and the power of what it means to love someone.

COVER LOVE: Broken Wings

Broken Wings (Hidden Wings #2) by Cameo Renae

Publisher: Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing
Release Date: June 1rst/2013
Pages: N/A
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What It's About!

Emma’s world is falling apart, and Kade, the only one who seems to hold her together, is missing. With death lingering right outside their door, decisions must be made before it’s too late.
The Midway has refused to send help, so they are left to seek out the only other who can stop Lucian.
A perilous quest sends Emma and a few Guardians into the Underworld, where the unimaginable abide, to beseech the Prince of Darkness himself. Lucifer.
Now, they must endure the deadly levels of Hell, which not one …mortal or immortal… has ever survived.
Prepare for love, loss, and the unexpected.

The Rising

The Rising (Darkness Rising #3) by Kelley Armstrong

Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: April 2nd/2013
Pages: 406
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What It's About!

Things are getting desperate for Maya and her friends. Hunted by the powerful St. Clouds and now a rival Cabal as well, they're quickly running out of places to hide. And with the whole world thinking they died in a helicopter crash, it's not like they can just go to the authorities for help.

All they have is the name and number of someone who might be able to give them a few answers. Answers to why they're so valuable, and why their supernatural powers are getting more and more out of control.

But Maya is unprepared for the truths that await her. And now, like it or not, she'll have to face down some demons from her past if she ever hopes to move on with her life. Because Maya can't keep running forever.

Old secrets are revealed and unexpected characters make a surprising return in this stunning conclusion to Kelley Armstrong's New York Times bestselling Darkness Rising trilogy.

Review

There are just no words to explain how much I LOVE the Darkness Rising trilogy!! Especially books 2 and 3!

In this last installment, the characters go through many changes, face many challenges, and come to a very heartwarming, but also not so heartwarming conclusion.

Kelley Armstrong tied up this series very nicely. I actually liked this last book more than I liked the last book of the Darkest Powers trilogy. The Rising was definitely a ride, it was so action-packed and eventful that it kept me guessing and wanting more at every turn. I tried not to read the whole book all at once, for I just wasn't ready for this series to end! But now that I HAVE read it, I'm really looking forward to what Kelley Armstrong comes out with next.

I love how in this book, there were so many characters, but it never got too messy. Kelley always had some reason that this character or that character wasn't there in that moment, or would have just a couple characters move away from the group so that we weren't bogged down with SO many characters at once. One of my most favorite moments in the entire book was when the new characters were brought together with old characters from the Darkest Powers trilogy. It really made things super interesting and put such a good twist into the story. I just loved it!

Not to purposely give anything away, I liked the character Maya tends to lean toward the most throughout the book. I really think they are a better fit and have a lot more chemistry and history than the other character (if you've read the book, you know which ones I'm talking about!!). I enjoyed every minute of The Rising. It started out fast and action packed, right where the last book left off but it slowly started a slow decent into the end conclusion of the series, which I really liked. I am SO hoping there will be a third trilogy that connects the Darkest Powers and Darkness Rising trilogies together (I've heard rumors!) because that would just be the greatest thing EVER!

Rating 

 

Adorned by Georgeann Swiger

Adorned (The Trinity of Souls #1) by Georgeann Swiger

Publisher: Entranced Publishing
Release Date: November 4th/2013
Pages: N/A
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What It's About!

When seventeen-year-old Anya finds out she’s actually an angel being trained to protect humanity, she discovers that becoming an angel has nothing to do with wings and haloes. For Anya, becoming an angel has to do with death—her death.
Micah, the angelic soldier ordered to protect her until she transitions from human to angel, promises her death will be a glorious experience as long as she follows his rules. But getting Anya through this life and to the next isn’t as simple as Micah expects. His job becomes even more difficult after he unwittingly performs a miracle that exposes Anya’s hidden angelic light.
With her secret out, Hell’s legions begin targeting her. Unfortunately, Hell’s minions are the least of Micah’s worries. He’s more concerned about the forbidden human emotions he’s developed toward Anya. Even more troubling, is she seems to love him too. And giving in to those feelings, could mean dire consequences for them both.