Thursday, January 31, 2013

Found Cover Reveal & Contest






Found (The Crescent Chronicles #3)
Coming Summer 2013
Cover Design: Once Upon a Time Covers
Levi might be hot, strong, and have a cool set of wings, but it's not enough to make up for keeping Allie in the dark.

 Allie's tired of being left with more questions than answers. She's tired of loving a guy who refuses to level with her.  Most of all, she's tired of her life spinning out of control.

Desperate to save Jess no matter the personal cost, Allie has to face the possibility that the only one she can trust is herself.

Umm... WOW! What an amazing cover... Enter the contest below.


a Rafflecopter giveaway



Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17202502-found
Author Links:
Website: http://www.alyssaroseivy.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlyssaRoseIvy
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlyssaRoseIvy
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5047249.Alyssa_Rose_Ivy
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/alyssaroseivy/

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Cover Reveal & Contest Tomm!

Hey everyone I just wanted to drop a reminder that I will be participating in Alyssa Rose Ivy's cover reveal for the latest installment in the Crescent Chronicles. I will also be hosting a giveaway that is reader's choice of her books! Stop by tomorrow to enter and see the gorgeous cover!

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Focus by Alyssa Rose Ivy



I was so excited to receive an eARC of Focus! I have truly fallen in love with this series and with Levi! I’m so happy that amazon recommended the first book in the series, Flight. If you haven't read Flight there is a review here. Here’s the description of Focus from goodreads:

Freshman year of college is hard even when you're not tied to the future king of a supernatural society.

Allie dives into college head first with Hailey as her roommate and the city of New Orleans as her backyard. As things within The Society heat up, Allie realizes that whether she’s with Levi or not, she's in far too deep to turn back.

So here are some of the many reasons to fall in love with this series and specifically with Focus!

 Levi continues to be completely hot. Despite his “stupid” streak in which he tries to leave Allie in the dark. He shows his sweeter side in this sequel as he tries to win her back over. I do love that he never loses that confident edge despite trying to show Allie a softer side.

- We see more of the supporting characters! I actually fell a little in love with Jared in this book. Strange idea if you have read Flight but you really get to see a lot of interaction between the supporting characters.

- Allie is no pushover. She is strong and independent and doesn’t blindly overlook Levi’s faults. She challenges him to be better and doesn’t make it easy on him when he messes up.

- The storyline continues to evolve and change which keeps the series interesting. Going into a third installment after reading this second installment is just as exciting of a wait as it was for Focus. The curveball thrown at the end isn’t a cliffhanger but it has kept me preoccupied wondering what is going to happen next.

The Crescent Chronicles are a great read for anyone interested in the paranormal New Adult genre. I give this book a 5 and will be perched on the edge of my seat waiting for the next installment. The cover reveal will be on the 31st and I am very excited to take part in it!

Friday, January 18, 2013

Interview with Bella & Contest!

The author of my recent indie review A Shade of Vampire has graciously agreed to an interview and a giveaway of her book! Also, check out the newly redone cover to her book! At the bottom of the interview you will find the contest entry information. You can also find Bella and news updates regarding the series at her Facebook Page.

Interview:

1. What inspired your series?

I'm not really sure if there was a direct inspiration for the story. The
idea just sort of popped into my head one day and the characters and
storyline developed organically from there. Although this happened at a
time when I had lost someone close to me so I'm sure this had something to
do with it.

2. How long did it take you to get from the idea to publishing your story?

Once I started actually writing it down, probably about four months.

3. How many books do you see in the series?

I'm not really sure at this point, although I can say at least two more.


4. Can you give us any hints about the next book?
Unfortunately, I'm not revealing anything about the next book just yet.

5. What do you do when you aren't writing?
Right now, when I'm not writing, I'm either working on marketing my
current book or reading.

6. Do you have any other books in the works?
Other than the second installment to A Shade Of Vampire, yes. I do have
another series in the works, although I'm not spending much time on it
right now since readers are pressuring me for the next part of Derek and
Sofia's story!

7. What is/are your favorite book(s)?
This is a really tough question because I have so many favorites. But
three that spring to mind first are:

Pride & Prejudice
The Chronicles of Narnia
Harry Potter

As of yet there is no release date for the next book in the series but you can go to Bella's website to join her mailing list for updates!

To win a copy of A Shade of Vampire enter below:



You can get a paperback copy here for USA or here for UK
You can get an ebook here for USA or here for UK

Feature & Follow Friday



Q: Who is your favorite Villian?

Hmmm.. this is a really tough one for me... Since I read a lot of romance type lit I really can't say that I have a favorite villain. Most of the time I identify best with the main couple and not those that are causing conflict in the story. 

Follow via Google please and don't forget to enter the contest in the post above for a free copy of A Shade of Vampire!

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Help Me Out!

So my daughters are in a photo contest with a local radio station. I would greatly appreciate it if you would click on the widgets beneath and vote! Excuse the horrible photo of my youngest my husband did that.. I'll post a better one in a few days! Thanks for voting!! Also leave me a comment if you do vote so I can thank you!



Tuesday, January 8, 2013

A Shade of Vampire Review and Contest Announcement


I am so excited to receive so many great review requests since I have come back from my hiatus. I received a review request from Bella Forrest for her new book A Shade of Vampire. After reading the sample on amazon I decided to go ahead and review the book for her as I found it intriguing. Here’s the description:

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?

I know most of us are quite over vampires in the paranormal genre but what drew me into this story was that it is different. The concept that the vampires live separately on an island was intriguing. Also the mystery that surrounds Derek and his entrance to the story got me further interested in the story. The world that Bella has built isn’t like any other world I have read.

I enjoyed Sofia’s strength in the story and her lack of whiny qualities. She has a quiet strength that really draws you to her character. She isn’t overly headstrong and independent but I imagine her with a lot of dignity and poise. Derek keeps you guessing about what he is truly like. He acts very affectionate with Sofia and yet is still a hard ruler to the other characters. To me this endeared him even more. I would have liked to see more depth in the characters. It seemed as though there was more to them but the story didn't take time to focus on them. 

The conflict arises between Derek and his brother as there is a lot of jealousy there and they both want Sofia. There is not a love triangle here though as one wants to posses her and break her will and the other seems to love her. I also liked that there wasn’t a love triangle as I am quite over those.

My main issue with the book was that it was really short. I really wanted to see more description of the island and see more of the interaction between Derek and Sofia. We are told that they grow into a routine and become affectionate but we don’t get to see all of that. We don’t see them sharing their pasts, etc. The characters behave in a way that implies they have depth and multiple facets to their personality but we don't get a lot of insight into that. I would also like to know more about this issue that Sofia suffers from and has to see the witch about. I'm hoping some of this is revealed in the next installment. 

Overall, I give the book a 3.5. It was shorter than I would like and it just seemed to be missing something for me to give it that 4 or 5 review. However, this is the author's first book and there is so much potential in this story. Despite my rating of 3.5 I really recommend it as a read and a potentially great series to follow. 

Bella will be with us on Jan 18th to do an interview and she has generously agreed to giveaway a copy of her book! Check back next Friday for the interview and contest information. 



Monday, January 7, 2013

Follow Friday 1/4/2013 - Lost in Thought



1. When did you start blogging?

I started blogging about 2 years ago. I did take almost a full year off though as my son's acting career and my pregnancy started demanding all of my free time. However, I'm now back and enjoying having something to do that I enjoy on the side!

2. What is your favorite part of book blogging?

I think it would be a tie between getting to read a lot of great books prior to them being released and connecting with authors. It is always fun to see comments from authors of the books I have reviewed or even emails. I have so much respect for what they do and it is always fun when an author I connected with has a book on a bookshelf where I shop!

3. What is your favorite book?

This changes every few months. Right now I would say Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire. It is very beautifully written and is in the new adult genre that I am coming to love. I'm actually really excited because I got one of the autographed copies she released in hardback for Christmas!

4. What has been the best thing that has happened to you because of book blogging?

I have a better system for finding books that I would like to read. I read obnoxious amounts and just going by amazon reviews is not enough. I like the honesty and thought that my fellow book bloggers put into their reviews.

Q. What New Year's blogging or writing resolution have you put on yourself?

hmm you should see my friday five from right before New Year's. I don't make resolutions for New Year's. I think you should set goals any time you want to. When I came back to blogging no too long ago I just resolved to have a weekly presence. I would like to see that continue. I don't want to add pressure to myself with my son's activities and new baby.

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Friday, January 4, 2013

The Friday Five! 1/4/2013

The first five of 2013

1. So I'm curious as to what the majority of people's opinions are on a New Year's resolution. It seems as though less people make them in my general circle of friends every year and I am curious as to if that is a current trend. Personally, I don't make resolutions at New Year's because I feel that whenever I have a goal that I should set it. For instance, I resolved to loose all the baby weight from my last two kids in November. So far I have lost about 15 lbs and am doing great with it. I don't feel as though you should have to make them only at New Years. If I did have something that I wanted to change at New Year's then I would likely make a resolution then. It just hasn't worked out that way in the past few years. What are your resolutions if you have them?

2. I am obsessed with the Today show. Now that I work from home I love that I get a chance to sort of watch the entire show. My son's homeschool starts at 9 AM so I catch bits and pieces after that point and while I am feeding the kids breakfast. However, I was a little disappointed with the show this week. All of the New Year's tips seem to be common sense. For instance, the saving money this year segment here is a list of suggestions they gave:
  - Make your own coffee instead of buying it and it can save you around 1000 dollars a year. I feel this is a bit of a no brainer especially with the new 1 cup serving machines.
  - Bring your lunch. This is one we struggle with in my house. My husband's office orders out all the time so I'm constantly making charts and whatnot to show him how much we spend in eating out.
The list continues but it really was a lot of obvious tips for households that have been watching spending in the past year.

3. My newest addition has finally given up the midnight feeding and is down to 1 night feeding. This is a huge relief as all of my previous kids were sleeping through the night at around a month. If only I could get her on a regular schedule that would be great.

4. I leave next Friday for my trip to Los Angeles for 2 months. I just finished planning our travel out there today and finalized everything with the apartment and furniture. I'm also really excited that my son finally has an imdb page for the 2 movies he worked in this year. It kinda makes it more real when I see him on an official site. I never thought I would be the mom of a working child actor a few years ago.

5. I have officially made it through my entire TBR pile and now have a backlog of reviews to get done. This saddens me a bit as now I don't have much to read. I find that amazon recommendations are all things I have read or don't care for and goodreads is the same issue. Anyone have some great book suggestions? I have 28 hours in a car next weekend and need reading material!