Tag: young adult

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Review of The gorgeous dozen

BLURB
June 16th. Twenty years ago, Ricky and her friends made a promise. They would have a reunion after two decades in Pop Tate’s, a famous milkshake shop. But when the day came only two of them made it. This prompts Ricky to go on a journey and seek the ones who broke the promise.
Modern life is not very conducive to long term friendships. Circumstances and situations change so quickly that it’s difficult to maintain loyalty and keep in touch for too long. The Gorgeous Dozen is a celebration of those golden years that we have all experienced in school, when the best friendships are made. It is one person’s quest to seek friends from a time long forgotten. For Ricky, it is as much a journey of self-discovery as it is about exploring our glorious and diverse nation.

MY REVIEW

If you want to go down memory lane and take a peep into school life and the lovely memories, I’m sure you have picked up the right book.

The gorgeous dozen does rekindle those memories and makes you time travel back to those golden days of happiness and enjoyment.

To keep in touch with your friends in the era where social media was long lost friend is truly great. The book is a light and an engaging read. I got the book signed by the author on exchange for honest review as part of blogchatter book review program.

I was happy that the book chose me. Yes not making it up, I was supposed to review another book and I’m not sure what really happened, the book never came and I was offered this. And I’m glad I made no mistake of denying an opportunity to review a good read.

A promise made by the girl gang, yes this happened, happens and is still happening to be in touch no matter what happens. They make a promise to meet at the exact same place a milkshake shop after twenty years.

Did it happen? Yes, not all from the gang. So Ricky takes up a challenge to set out on a roller coaster ride to find and reunite the others. As she travels across the country and gets to know different cultures ,creed she unveils truth of how life treated the others.

The cover actually makes you relate or gives you a glimpse of what’s it all about. I loved the simple and coherent writing and yes I finished it quick at a stretch.

Ricky on one hand has a personal problem in her relationship to deal and on other hand sets out to reunite the both dozen. Does she do it ? I will leave that you to read the book.

In the world of social media , Ricky did not resort to them for the reunion. She did not depend on Retweets, reposts or likes or forwards. She set out on her own legs to get the search on.

I loved the fact that this being a debut novel the author chose to write from an opposite gender point of view and has succeeded.

MY RATINGS

Title -4/5

Plot -4/5

Writing and presentation -4/5

Cover -4/5

Overall -4/5

BOOK DETAILS

Publisher : APK publisher LLP

Length :130

ISBN -10 : 938179152X

ISBN 13 : 978-9381791523

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vivek Aiyyar is an author based in Pune. He has contributed poems and short stories to numerous publications. He has worked for a music magazine and covered rock shows and done interviews with leading Indian rock bands. He is also a movie buff and football fanatic. He balances a day job, a little baby boy and a very restless mind along with his writing.
The Gorgeous Dozen is Vivek’s debut novel. He can be contacted on vivek_aiyyar@yahoo.co.in

This review is a part of for the Blogchatter Book Review Program. The Book was sent to me for a review and all views are honest and mine.

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Book blitz of extinction of all children



Extinction of All Children
L.J. Epps
(Extinction of All Children #1)
Publication date: June 4th 2016
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

A young adult, fantasy novel about a teenager who is the last eighteen-year-old in her territory. There will never be another child; every baby born after her has been taken away. Everyone wonders why she survived.

Emma Whisperer was born in 2080, in the small futuristic world of Craigluy. President Esther, in charge for the last twenty-two years, has divided their world into three territories, separated by classes—the rich, the working class, and the poor—because she believes the poor should not mingle with the others. And, the poor are no longer allowed to have children, since they do not have the means to take care of them.

Any babies born, accidentally or willfully, are killed. Emma is the last eighteen-year-old in her territory; every baby born after her has died. Somehow, she survived this fate.

During the president’s Monday night speech, she announces a party will be held to honor the last child in the territory, Emma Whisperer. Emma must read a speech, expressing how happy she is to be the last eighteen-year-old.

Emma doesn’t like the rules; she doesn’t believe in them. So, she feels she must rebel against them. Her family doesn’t agree with her rebellion, since they are hiding a big secret.

If this secret gets out, it will be disastrous, and deadly, for her family.

During Emma’s journey, she meets—and becomes friends with—Eric. He is one of the guards for the president. She also befriends Samuel, another guard for the president, who is summoned to watch over her. As Emma meets new people, she doesn’t know who she can trust. Yet, she finds herself falling for a guy, something which has never happened before.

After doing what she feels is right, Emma finds herself in imminent danger.

In the end, she must make one gut-wrenching decision, a decision that may be disastrous for them all.

“Fans of dystopian fantasy will devour this book. L. J. Epps writes a story that, while dealing with heavy subject matter, is still a light, enjoyable read. This dystopian fantasy novel ignites the imagination, and is a must read for fans of The Hunger Games and the Divergent Trilogy.”

—Kristina Gemmell, Beta Reader

Goodreads / Amazon

The complete series:

  

—

EXCERPT:

I take in a deep breath before walking into my family’s house. Our brick home is around a thousand square feet. My father says since it is on the smaller side, it takes a lot less money to heat and cool. The back of the house is like a forest, and the front of the house is on a dirt road with lots of gravel. As soon as I reach the front door, I notice the stench of beans lingering in the air, making the room smell as if a skunk has run through it.

“You’re late,” my brother, Theodore, says. “You know dinner is at six.”

He shoves my arm. He has on dark clothing that mirrors my own.

“Whatever,” I say, rolling my eyes. Another stupid rule. “It’s almost eight.” I glance at the brown clock on the wall. “Shouldn’t you be done?”

“We had to stop what we were doing and watch the box,” he says, then he gulps down a bottle of water.

His Adam’s apple moves in and out, while the bottle crinkles in his hand.

“Yes, the announcements came early.” My father rises from the dining room table. “I’m sure you heard them.”

He walks to the living room where I am.

“I did.” I lower my eyes.

“Where were you?” Mother asks. “We were worried.”

“I know, and I’m sorry, but I’m fine. I watched the announcements from the supply store.”

I know they worry about me, but I also know they won’t ask how I ended up at the supply store, or ask why my jeans are dirty. There is a more pressing question they want to ask.

“Did you see her?” my mother asks.

“Yes,” I reply.

Now that is what they really care about.

“How was she?”

“I guess as good as she can be.” I shrug.

“What does that mean?” my mother asks with a frown. “You’re not giving me any details.”

I sigh. It was the same questions every time I go to the wooded area. Another sigh follows because my heart saddens, seeing how old my mother looks. She is only in her fifties, but I can see the gray strands in her dark hair instantly becoming grayer every time we discuss this. Even when I bring back food, my mother is too tense to eat. Day by day she is growing thinner.

“Emma, answer your mother,” my father says, looking at me with slanted eyes.

“If you want to know how she is, why don’t you go and see her yourself?” I snap back. I’m tired of the theatrics. But it was a stupid question. I know why they can’t go. They aren’t strong enough or fast enough.

“You know your mother moves too slowly. She would never make it there,” my father says, echoing the very words in my head.


Author Bio:

L.J. Epps is a lover of all things related to books: fiction and nonfiction novels, as well as biographies and autobiographies. She has also been known to sit and read comic books from cover to cover, several times over.

Over the last few years, L.J. has written several manuscripts; her mission is to publish all of them. She enjoys writing fiction in several genres, including contemporary romance and women’s fiction, as well as young adult dystopian, science fiction and fantasy. She loves to write because it immerses her into another world that is not her own.

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Book blitz – The ruins



The Ruins
T.H. Hernandez
(The Union #2)
Publication date: June 16th 2015
Genres: Adventure, Dystopian, Romance, Young Adult

Heartbroken, grief-stricken, and wracked with guilt, seventeen-year-old Evan Taylor returned to the Union, leaving behind the boy she loved.

Now, she and her friends must find a way to do the impossible – warn the citizens of the Union about an impending rebel attack without alerting the government and risking retaliation against her friends in the Ruins.

When every move Evan makes is thwarted, it soon becomes clear she’s being watched. Faced with a daily fight to stay one step ahead of her pursuers, she returns to the Ruins. But life in the Ruins has its own dangers, and soon she’s fighting a different battle – to stay alive long enough to discover the truth.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo / Google Play

—

EXCERPT:

Grief, guilt, heartbreak, fear, loss, and abandonment all swirl in my head, creating a vortex of pain and confusion keeping me awake.

Three days ago I was planning a future with the boy I love. Cyrus was going to come back to the Union with me. We were going to figure out a way to warn the citizens here or stop the attack. Together. Now his brother is dead and Cyrus stayed behind, unwilling to abandon the rest of his family.

The scents of honeysuckle and fresh-cut grass float on a late summer night breeze. I stare up at the clouds from the chaise lounge on the balcony. A thick marine layer inched its way in from the coast hours ago, blanketing the sky and obscuring the stars I was hoping to see. With the moon hidden and the Union lights off for the night, darkness envelopes me.

Over the soft murmuring of desalinated ocean water burbling through the aqueduct, I hear the door slide open behind me and sit up. My bio-dad, Eddie, walks out and takes the spot beside me.

“Can’t sleep?”

I shift to my right, giving him more room. “No. You?”

He shakes his head, his cinnamon-colored wavy hair sweeping across his shoulders. “My grandmother used to say if you can’t sleep, it means you’re awake in someone else’s dreams.”

That’s a comforting sentiment. Is Cyrus dreaming about me right now? Or is he like me, too afraid of the nightmares to close his eyes?

Eddie presses his lips together and studies me for several long seconds. “Are you ready to tell me where you’ve really been all summer?”

His question catches me off guard. I thought he bought my story, the one I told him when I came back. The one Lisa fed him while I was in the Ruins. Posing as me, she texted my mom and Eddie from my tablet with regular updates on our fake adventures sailing off the southeastern coast. When I first showed up here yesterday afternoon, he didn’t seem to care where I’d been or what I’d been up to, only that I was here at all. I’m definitely not ready to have this conversation with him.

“I don’t know, are you ready to tell me where you were for the first twelve years of my life?”

He shifts his weight on the chaise next to me and sighs. “I don’t know how many times I can apologize.”

“You think another ‘I’m sorry’ is going to fix everything?”

He rubs his palms on his thighs and stands. “You’re welcome to stay here as long as you’d like, but you might want to ratchet the anger down a few notches.” He moves toward the door before turning back. “You’re going to have to forgive me some day.”

I raise my head and turn toward his dark silhouette. “Why? You think sending me a ticket and letting me hang out with your new kids makes up for everything?”

“No,” he says quietly, “because hanging on to all that anger and resentment isn’t healthy.” He walks back into the house, sliding the door closed behind him.

With a heavy sigh, I fall on my back and stare back up into the blackness. Seriously? After being nothing to me for three-quarters of my life, where does he get off being all parental right now?


Author Bio:

T.H. Hernandez is the author of young adult books. The Union, a futuristic dystopian adventure, was a finalist in the 2015 San Diego book awards in the Young Adult Fiction category.

She loves pumpkin spice lattes, Game of Thrones, Comic-Con, Star Wars, Doctor Who marathons, Bad Lip Reading videos, and all things young adult, especially the three young adults who share her home.

When not visiting the imaginary worlds inside her head, T.H. Hernandez lives in usually sunny San Diego, California with her husband and three children, a couple of cats, and a dog who thinks he’s a cat, affectionately referred to as “the puppycat.”

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Book blitz – Book of enchantresses



Book of Enchantresses
Mary Ting
(Book of Watchers, #2)
Publication date: February 21st 2019
Genres: Fantasy, New Adult

Keira is convinced her guardian, Ezekiel, knows more than he shared about her biological parents, and she will do everything she can to find out who they were. She secretly meets the powerful witch Awan at a nightclub and is promised the answers she seeks on one condition: she retrieves the legendary Book of Enchantresses. Keira, along with Uriel, Samyaza, Jonah, and her Nephilim friends, must travel to another realm in Gotjawal Forest on Jeju Island to recover the spell book. But nothing is free, and actions have consequences. When Keira’s team returns to their world, vampires attack a demon stronghold. No one knows who to blame, but the fragile peace has been rocked. And it’s about to get worse—Lucifer has escaped Hell.

Add to Goodreads

—

Sequel to:


Author Bio:

International Bestselling, Award-Winning Author Mary Ting writes soulful, spellbinding stories that excite the imagination and captivate readers all over the world. Her books run a wide range of genres and her storytelling talents have won her a devoted legion of fans and garnered critical praise.

Becoming an author happened by chance. It was a way to grieve the death of her beloved grandmother, and inspired by a dream she had in high school. After realizing she wanted to become a full-time author, Mary retired from teaching after twenty years. She also had the privilege of touring with the Magic Johnson Foundation to promote literacy and her children’s chapter book: No Bullies Allowed.

Mary resides in Southern California with her husband, two children, and two little dogs, Mochi and Mocha. She enjoys oil painting and making jewelry.

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Book blitz – The devil’s pact



The Devil’s Pact
V. S. McGrath
(The Devil’s Revolver #3)
Publication date: December 18th 2018
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Hold on to your hats — the Devil’s Revolver series is back with an evil twin, deep magic, zombies, menacing grand balls, a train heist, hand-to-hand high-stakes battles, and two sisters who have grown in their power to face and fight the end of the Weird West.

If Hettie Alabama could do what she was told and stand down . . . she might not anyway. Especially when the letters her sister sends from her place of hiding don’t seem quite right, and Hettie’s posse is tying her hands tighter by the day. She’s itching to take the safety off her cursed mage gun, the Devil’s Revolver, and walk through the fire to end the reign of evil that’s choking the magic out of the West—not to mention save her sister once and for all.

The only problem? Hettie’s name is in the headlines and on every wanted poster in the nation—but she’s not the one robbing banks and killing innocents, even if the pictures look just like her. She’s up to her chin in high-necked gowns and beauty glamors, charged with fulfilling her word to the influential Favreau family of New Orleans, even as it becomes increasingly clear that they want only to consolidate the world’s waning magic in the hands of the rich and powerful. The politics get more personal as the most loyal of Hettie’s gang uncover the threat of an immoderate technology that steals magic from the unwitting innocent and transfers it to the nefarious elite.

Hettie has no choice but to go rogue, and when she drops a black hat over her brow, the Devil’s Revolver’s trigger glows hot. The Devil’s Pact stampedes from San Francisco’s Chinatown tongs through the glittering high society of Chicago to the hidden swamps of the Deep South in its search for truth, genuine justice, and an end to a world that refuses to recognize the power and change wrought by girls.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

—

EXCERPT:

She clambered over the rooftops, jumping the gaps between buildings with relative ease, since they were so close together. She spotted a large canvas-covered cart in the street pulled by four ragged horses. It was one of those old covered wagons like they used back when settlers were still making their way across the country, and it looked out of place in the city. Hettie climbed down a fire escape, but as she wove through traffic, the time bubble popped—

Suddenly, she was smack-dab in the middle of oncoming traffic. A man shouted and hauled on his reins. His hansom cab buckled violently, and the horse reared. Hettie scampered out of the way of its hooves and directly into the path of another cart. The man’s horses faltered and tried to skirt around her, but then the cart they were pulling plowed into them, and they whinnied in panic, veering to the side and crashing into another rider.

Hettie ran toward the covered wagon, summoning Diablo and trying to re-establish the time bubble. No good. The same thing had happened during the train robbery.

A man peeked out of the covered wagon. He shouted and drew his sidearm. Hettie zigzagged to avoid the gunshots and pulled Diablo’s trigger, unleashing a blast of green power that incinerated the man’s arm up to his shoulder.

Two more men appeared with rifles. Hettie ducked left and rolled behind a cart as the bullets bit into the cab, showering her with splinters. The passengers within screamed.

Traffic ground to a halt and people dove out of their vehicles while the drivers tried to get their horses under control. The covered wagon surged forward and plowed through the street while the men in the back continued an assault on the cab Hettie hid behind.

She had to stop that wagon.

She whipped around the corner and fired. Diablo let out a wide beam of power that took out the right two wheels. The wagon collapsed with a loud crash, sending up a wake of splinters. The whole right side of the wagon tore off, and the canopy ripped away from the U-shaped frame as it snapped up like angry fish spines.

People screamed as carts, drivers and pedestrians tried to escape the gunfire and chaos. Horses thrashed and reared, whinnying as the vehicles piled up. Hettie ran toward the wagon.

It was empty. Unless Dr. Fielding had somehow escaped…

One of the men with the rifles who’d tumbled from the wagon pushed up off the ground. He spotted Hettie and, in a panic, reached for his pistol.

Hettie pointed Diablo at him. “Don’t.”

He blinked at her. “I-I-I’m sorry, Mizzay, I didn’t realize—” He stuttered to a stop. “Wait, you’re not—”

Hettie cocked Diablo for show. “Where’s Dr. Fielding?”

He gaped. “I—I don’t know—”

Hettie blew a molten hole in the ground next to his feet, and he stumbled back. “Where is he?”

“I was just supposed to stay in the cart! I don’t know anything!” His eyes canted left. Hettie reacted a second too late.

Someone cinched an arm around her neck and dragged her backward. Hettie struggled, dropping Diablo as she tried to pry her fingers under the man’s elbow to get a breath.

She sank her teeth into the man’s thick muscle, then slammed her heel into his shin, twisting to throw him off balance. He yelped and let go. She dove for Diablo and before she could stop herself, fired.

The man’s shriek was cut off almost instantly as he evaporated, flaring like a hellish green grease fire.

The agony of the revolver’s blood price was instant, shredding through skin, flesh and bone as it extracted one year of Hettie’s life for the life she’d taken. The pain went on and on, as if she were the one being consumed by flame. It’d been months since she’d killed a man; months since she’d slaked Diablo’s bloodthirst. And the mage gun’s appetite was insatiable. For a flash, she thought she was back in hell, being swallowed and forced down into Satan’s gullet—and then it was over.

Through the haze of relief, Hettie barely registered the person standing over her, pistol drawn, its blank, black eye winking at her.


Author Bio:

Vicki So, writing as V. S. McGrath, is a published romance author (as Vicki Essex) and has six books with Harlequin Superromance: Her Son’s Hero (July 2011); Back to the Good Fortune Diner (January 2013), which was picked for the Smart Bitches Trashy Books Sizzling Book Club; In Her Corner (March 2014); A Recipe for Reunion (March 2015); Red Carpet Arrangement (January 2016); and Matinees with Miriam (November 2016). She lives in Toronto, Canada.

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Book blitz – girl with all the pain



Girl with all the Pain
Michael Herman
(Aliens, Tequila & Us #4)
Publication date: February 23rd 2018
Genres: Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult

Sometimes an ugly duckling becomes more than just a swan.

In the streets of Santiago, Chile, a young homeless girl named Isabel screams a scream of rage that is the last sound the gang tormenting her ever hears.

Deep within the city, a family feels her cry and sets out to find her for their sake as well as hers.

Never straying far from Isabel, Skunk Mountain, a homeless pile of walking filth, visible to only the neighborhood kids, maintains a guardian presence that is key to her survival in a world where, beneath the very ground they walk, a dark ancient intelligent entity prepares to unleash forces that will devastate Chile.

Sometimes that swan has claws and teeth.

_______________________________________

Girl with all the Pain is the first of the Global Invasion Chronicles.

The Aliens, Tequila & Us series is prologue to Girl with all the Pain

_______________________________________

If you are interested in mass extinction events, Chinchorro mummies, alien creatures, tequila, Pisco Sours, Very Large Telescopes, foreign tongues, evolution theories, witchcraft beliefs, Santiago Chile, underground caves, vineyards, million dollar concept bikes, interstellar space travel, abandoned mines, the Atacama Desert, Russian ATVs, Himmler’s Nazis Lebensborn, predictions of future times, earthquakes, orchids, avatars, and people with mutant powers, then this is the book for you.

Kind reviews go far and help keep up the spirit while I work to bring the second Global Invasion Chronicle to life.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

—

EXCERPT:

When the woman strokes Isabel’s black fur, Isabel purrs loudly and makes clicking sounds. She knows she rests between friends who will not allow the ones below the base of the statue to harm her. The woman looks down at Isabel and says, “At long last, I have found you. You have not been forgotten. You and your people will return. We will end your long-suffering. You will no longer be alone.”

Isabel looks up at her with her black cat yellow eyes, and purrs. But below her feet, the ground trembles with the might of her enemy. The woman acknowledges the terrible presence beneath them and stoops to Isabel and says, “Only you can restore order. Only you can save them. Only you can end this. When your knowledge of yourself matures and you flower to your destiny, you will fulfill yourself and your time will be complete. We will join you and make it happen. Do you understand?”

Isabel snarls in response and lets out a mighty roar.

Then she is back on the daylight street holding hands with the mirror version of herself. She looks into the mirror self’s eyes and a shudder ripples through her body. The mirror version releases her hands, smiles, looks to Ángel and says, “All is well.”


Author Bio:

When he isn’t doing construction or creating 3D simulations for the AEC industry, Michael Herman writes from his small urban hillside farm in California where he types away to the sounds of chickens, coyotes, the occasional fox and his household pets.

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Book blitz – Shrouded kingdom



Shrouded Kingdom
Rachel Medhurst
Publication date: December 28th 2018
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Once a human. Now a fae princess, destined to be queen.

Layanna Fairling has never belonged to her village, and yet, when it’s threatened by a tyrant who wants her dead, she knows she has to protect it.

Three mysterious strangers who claim Layanna is a changeling and future ruler of the Seelie Court arrive to aid her. They also claim that the only way of saving her village is by overthrowing the Unseelie tyrant who inherited the throne from his evil father when he slayed her real parents, the Fae King and Queen of Althea.

The tyrant’s greed and violence threaten to tear apart the kingdom she never knew existed, leaving Layanna with a simple choice. Overthrow the handsome and powerful tyrant, or lose everyone and everything she loves.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

Only 99¢ for a limited time!

—

EXCERPT:

The hiss of an arrow barely missing my head made my stomach plummet to my feet. The thud of the sharp tip ploughing into the ground next to the tree nearby forced my body into action. I didn’t even pause to look behind me.

“Wait!” someone shouted.

As if I would wait for the same person to shoot me with an arrow.

My threadbare leather shoes attacked the dry earth like acorns when they thudded against the ground. A slight breeze caught my hair, making it fly behind me. The skirt of my ice blue dress almost got caught under my feet, so I grabbed it up into my hands and ran as fast as I could.

“Go away,” I whispered between laboured breaths.

The whistle of another arrow brought on a yelp as my heart leapt into my throat. It landed behind me, the echo of it piercing the earth far too close for comfort.

Trees were silently strong around me as I kept my focus on the village. It was only a short distance. I would be safe there.

Silence suddenly surrounded me, the whisper of wind gone, the patter of my feet slowed down, as if I was moving in slow motion. What was happening?

A split second later, I was running at full pelt through the gap in the trees. The woods disappeared behind me as I thrust into the village square, my panting harsh in my ears as Dorian, the butcher’s son, stared at me from where he rested his meat cart.

“Are you well, Layanna?” he called as I came to a stop.

His light brown eyes watched me as I straightened my skirts and cleared my throat. A quick glance over my shoulder confirmed that no one had followed me from the woods although, I still couldn’t shake the feeling of foreboding that rushed over me.


Author Bio:

Rachel Medhurst grew up in Surrey, England. She writes to prove that no matter where you come from, you can be anything you want to be. Your past may shape you, but it doesn’t define you. When Rachel isn’t writing, she can be found reading and walking in nature.

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Book blitz – Captive rebel



Captive Rebel
Erin McDermott
(The Allegiance #1)
Publication date: July 2nd 2017
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult

In a world where Greek Gods rule over the Allegiance, Marylyn O’Conner struggles to survive.

Marylyn is a rebel, forced to do the rebellion’s bidding until an unforgiving family debt is paid. A pawn in the war against the Allegiance, she is obligated to become a rebel spy, or her family will suffer.

When word spreads that an Allegiant Prince, Ariston, has escaped rebel captivity vowing to hunt down rebel spies, Marylyn realizes her only hope is to escape Allegiant territory.

While on the run, Ariston captures Marylyn, preventing her from any chance of returning home. Desperate, she knows she needs to escape her alluring captor or risk the safety of her family.

But Marylyn can’t keep herself from falling for the mysterious prince as she finds that he can empathize with her troublesome past – a past no ally has understood before.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

Moist hands wrapped around my lower arm. “Excuse me, you’re that rebel girl aren’t you?” I turned to face a boy with sweeping black hair and piercing gray eyes. Unfortunately for him, he struggled to stand and his breath was repulsive.

“Who else would I be?” I bluntly responded while attempting to rip my arm from his hold. He only squeezed it tighter.

“I say you shouldn’t listen to these people who are talking poorly about you. I don’t think you’re a bad person. Not at all,” he gave me a weak smile and stumbled toward me.

I took a step back, weary of this boy. “Well, they’re probably right,” I said, trying to persuade him to back off. He continued approaching me with a sloppy grin plastered across his face. Clearly, my words did not dissuade him.

He held tighter on my arm as his face came increasingly close to mine. Before I knew what was happening, I reacted.

The moment his lips brushed against mine I pushed him away with my free arm. He went staggering to the floor. His one hand still firmly held onto my arm, dragging me down with him.

My body fell against his and my hair cascaded around his face. Before I could react, he slammed his hands against my chest, tossing my unprepared body onto the wooden floor next to him. My shoulder slammed onto the ground and I moaned in pain.

I reached for my shoulder and gripped it tightly. Before I could make another move large hands wrapped around my waist, pulling me up to a standing position. Bulky arms wrapped around me and I was pulled back into a man’s chest.

“Walk away before I hurt you,” Ariston’s warm breath tickled my ear as he spoke with a protective voice.

The boy in front of me was unrelenting, “She’s scum. Why are you protecting her?”

The pub went silent and all eyes were on the three of us. Ariston’s grip around my waist was unusually comforting, and I had a burning desire to ask him not to let go.

His deep voice echoed through the silent pub. “As your prince, and a man tortured by her kind, she is rightfully mine.”

“Rightfully no one’s,” I aggressively whispered only loud enough for him to hear and no one else.

“After spying on my family, you are mine.”


Author Bio:

Erin McDermott was born and raised in New Jersey. She graduated college with a bachelors degree in History. If she’s not in her room writing, you may find somewhere on the Jersey Shore with her family. She has been writing stories since 3rd grade. It was not until after experiencing the fast-paced life New York City had to offer that she decided to finally take the plunge and finish her first book, CAPTIVE REBEL (The Allegiance, Book 1).

During her years in college she expressed a deep interest in Greek Mythology, which she incorporates into The Allegiance Series. She is incredibly grateful to her family for supporting her throughout the trials and tribulations of the independent publishing process.

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Review of the Hidden children

BLURB:

Shayamukthy cruises through life: shooting hoops, daydreaming and listening to her favourite books. Even moving from the US to India, to a new school, a new culture, hasn’t really rattled her. But something isn’t right anymore and it begins when a New Girl joins the school. She pulls Shui into a world of magic and wonderment, a world she has been hidden from all her life. What starts as a quest to look for a lost book, hurtles Shui into a world where people live in trees, talk to the dead and speak to butterflies. But like all power, magic comes at a steep price and under all things wondrous lie demons waiting to crawl out. The more Shui learns, the more she doubts everything and everyone around her. Will she be able to master her powers, or will they devour her and everyone she loves?

MY REVIEW:

Firstly, the book is one of a kind. Yes, longing for a young adult fantasy by an Indian author. This book best deserves to be one of it.

The book is about Shayamukthy who daydreams and listens to books. She moves to India from the US. The change in diverse culture, the language, a new environment and new school do not seem to bring in a change in her. She is not upset by the vast changes that she encounters when she moves here.

Shui joins the school and there begins the adventure. When she comes across a floating pencil and a girl who speaks to butterflies’ things start changing. The authors narration and references to Mumbai are truly wonderful. And what more the book has illustrations that’s makes the reading part more interesting.

The plot is intriguing and a gripping read which we can finish at one go; though the book seems to be on the bulkier side.

The writing is simple and narration is subtle. YA fantasy that was long awaited has now hit the bookstores , so why wait , grab your copy of the wonderful read.

BOOK DETAILS:

Reading level:12 – 16 years

  • Paperback:420 pages
  • Publisher:Two Ravens Publishing (13 November 2018)
  • Language:English
  • ISBN-10:9353216206
  • ISBN-13:978-9353216207

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 4/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 4/5

Writing and Presentation: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Travel writer and novelist Reshma K Barshikar is an erstwhile Investment Banker who, as she tells it, ‘fell down a rabbit hole and discovered a world outside a fluorescent cubicle.’ As a travel and features writer, she contributes to National Geographic Traveller, Harper’s Bazaar, Grazia, The Sunday Guardian, SilverKris, The Mint Lounge and The Hindu. Fade Into Red, published by Random House India was her debut novel and featured in Amazon Top 10 Bestsellers. She also holds well renowned workshops for young adults at both BDL Museum and Kala Ghoda and is keen to build a strong Young Adult reading and writing community to fill the desperate lack of young adult fiction in the Indian Market. Her new Young Adult novel, The Hidden Children, will be launching at the Vizag Junior Literary Festival. Reshma is from the ISB Class of 2003. She calls both Mumbai and the Nilgiris home.

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Book blitz – Valiant



Valiant
Merrie Destefano
Published by: Entangled: Teen
Publication date: December 4th 2018
Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult

The Valiant was supposed to save us. Instead, it triggered the end of the world.

Earth is in shambles. Everyone, even the poorest among us, invested in the Valiant’s space mining mission in the hopes we’d be saved from ourselves. But the second the ship leaves Earth’s atmosphere, our fate is sealed. The alien invasion begins. They pour into cities around the world through time portals, possessing humans, forcing us to kill one another.

And for whatever reason, my brother is their number one target.

Now the fate of the world lies in the hands of me, a seventeen-year-old girl, but with the help of my best friend, Justin―who’s suddenly starting to feel like more―maybe if we save my brother, we can save us all…

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo / Entangled

—

EXCERPT:

There’s a pain in my chest as I remember the first time I stumbled across a man with fists lined with metal spikes. I was walking through downtown Santa Ana with Justin, and it was one of those times when I thought, He’s totally going to kiss me tonight. It was back before I began traveling through time, before I found out just how dark the world could be. We were laughing and heading toward a frozen yogurt shop, and he slid his arm around my waist.

It might have been the first time I thought, This guy is it; he’s the one I could fall for. I knew he was a Genetic and that nobody wanted us to be together. But I didn’t care. He was sunshine on a dark night. He was heat when the cold winds blew.

I put my head on his shoulder.

It was only natural.

It was exactly right.

Then I saw the metal man, his brow furrowed as if his heart held all the anger in the world. He was chaos and destruction and he was walking toward us, eyes like fire, like he wanted to kill us both.

Maybe he was looking at Justin. Metal men hate Genetics, because in a real battle, Genetics win. It doesn’t matter how much metal you’ve grafted onto your skin or bones—it might make you stronger, but you’re slower, too. Nobody can match the speed and natural strength of a Genetic. So, this guy might have been looking at Justin and challenging him, but it felt like I was going to be collateral damage.

One swing of his spike-covered fist and I’d be dead.

But I didn’t have to worry about it for long, because Justin pushed me behind him. I couldn’t see his face, but I could see the metal man. Doubt flickered in his eyes; he paused and glanced to the side. He was probably looking for a way out.

Justin took a step forward, his hands curled in fists. When he spoke, his voice came out like thunder, a loud, low growl that rumbled through my spine.

“Don’t even think about it,” Justin said. “Take one more step and I’ll rip out your metal implants, one by one. They hurt going in, so you better believe it’ll be a mother when I pull them out.”

He paused to laugh, but I’d never heard him laugh like that before. It was chilling, like he was a different person. He continued to warn the metal man. “Especially when I twist those implants sideways and the roots tear off chunks of your flesh.”

The metal man narrowed his eyes, and there was a split second when I thought he was going to tackle Justin.

Maybe he would have.

But he didn’t get a chance. It was like Justin knew the metal man’s plan, like it was an open football playbook. Justin rushed him, grabbed the guy around the waist, and slammed him against the brick wall of a local tattoo parlor. It took the wind out of the metal man’s lungs, and he was temporarily stunned. Justin could have slugged him; he could have broken the guy’s arms; he could have killed him.

All he did was lean close enough to whisper in the guy’s ear.

Then Justin stepped back and let the thug slide to the sidewalk in a heap. The metal man caught his breath, his eyes flickered, and he glanced up at us. Then he floundered to his hands and knees and crawled away as fast as he could. By the time he got to his feet, we were surrounded by a Friday-night club crowd, most of them drunk and all of them laughing at the metal man as he ran away.

Justin didn’t even hit the guy.

Sometimes you can win by intimidation alone.

So, do I melt every time I see this boy, who was willing to fight to protect me?

You better believe it.


Author Bio:

Born in the Midwest, former magazine editor Merrie Destefano currently lives in Southern California with her husband, two German shepherds, a Siamese cat, and the occasional wandering possum. Her favorite hobbies are reading speculative fiction and watching old Star Trek episodes, and her incurable addiction is writing. She loves to camp in the mountains, walk on the beach, watch old movies, and listen to alternative music—although rarely all at the same time.

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