Thursday, January 31, 2013

Printed Books Giveaway Hop


Winner's choice of one of my favorite indie author's books.  Here are your choices:




























Just follow StuckInBooks and fill out the rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway





Now hop along to the next blog....

Swoon Thursday ~ 1/31/13

The fabulous girls over at YA Bound created this super HOT meme.  Here's how it works.

From the book you’re currently reading, or one you just finished, tell us what made you SWOON. What got your heart pounding, your skin tingling, and your stomach fluttering.

Shout it out on Twitter with the hashtag #YABound, post it here in the comments, or grab the adorable button above and share it on your blog! I want to know & so do the chicks at YABound!

This week's swoon is a little different.  I have Dante from THE COLLECTOR by Victoria Scott.  Check this dude out.

I press my foot down on the accelerator, and the deep rumble of my candy-apple red Escalade growls.  My new baby girl has black leather, Bose surround sound, and 22" rims.  Match.com couldn't create a happier couple. (Kindle location 388)

Red is his favorite color! Oh and the boy does not like cats.  Just sayin'

Yeah, I'm swoon over this guy for sure.  Definite bad guy!  Review coming soon.

What ya think of my swoon?  Got one for me?  Leave me a comment.

Beauty from Pain by Georgia Cates ~ Excerpt & Giveaway

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Book Description:
They agreed on three months...but their love knew no boundaries.

Jack McLachlan is a winemaking magnate and easily one of Australia’s most eligible bachelors. His success and wealth makes him no stranger to the complications of romantic relationships and that’s why he goes to extreme measures to avoid the hassle. He prefers simplicity in the form of a beautiful female companion with no strings attached. He arranges relationships like business deals and they’re always the same. No long term relationships. No real names.

It’s his game and his rules. He’s content to play as usual, but when Laurelyn Prescott enters his life, his strategy must change because this player is like none he's ever encountered. His world is turned on its head after he begins a three month affair with the beautiful American musician. Nothing goes according to plan and as he breaks more and more of his own rules for her, she’s exceptionally close to becoming something he never thought possible. His ultimate game changer.



Beauty from Pain Excerpt #1
Jack McLachlan’s POV
I sit in the dark corner and scan the room like a starved predator searching for prey. I haven’t chosen her yet, but the woman who will share my bed for the next few months is in this room right now.
I watch a lovely blond approach my table. “What can I bring you?” Hmm. A waitress—not at all my usual taste.
I have a type. Attractive. Mature. Refined. This barmaid meets the attractive requirement well enough, but she’s void of refinement or maturity as displayed by her choice of apparel—a white, barely there tank top and frazzled cutoff denim shorts. She doesn’t do it for me. Plus, my last two companions were blond. I want a different flavor this time, but no redheads. I want a brunette. A beautiful one.
I remind myself I’m not in Sydney where I have an endless variety of sophisticated women from which to choose. My choices are more limited in the small town of Wagga Wagga, but that doesn’t mean I have to settle for the first attractive woman I see.
“I’ll have a Shiraz.”
I’m prepared for a more prolonged relationship this time—three whole months instead of the usual three or four weeks. I’m looking forward to keeping this one around a little longer, and that’s all the more reason to be certain I make a wise choice.
I begin my search of the club with the first table toward the front of the room. A brunette beauty sits with a group of women. I watch her for a while, but decide she’s too friendly with the woman sitting next to her. Lesbians aren’t in my repertoire.
I spend the next hour scanning the club and come up empty-handed. I’m discouraged. No one stands out as the one and this club is by far my best bet for meeting single women in this town. Maybe I should consider coming back another time when it’s not open mic night. Tonight, the place is crawling with boozed college students.
Tonight’s search has been a failure, but at least the karaoke was entertaining.
I’m finishing off the last of my wine before I leave when an announcer from the club takes the stage and asks for the next singer to step forward. A small group of people across the room nominates one of its own. My view of the poor bastard is blocked by the crowd of intoxicated kids standing between us, but I’m certain this is going to be another delightful train wreck.
The club erupts into cheer and chants. “Do. It. Do. It. Do. It.” A young woman walks onto the stage and stands with her back to the crowd as she lifts a guitar from its stand. She lifts its strap over her head and then tosses her long brown hair over one shoulder. When she’s finished settling the guitar into place, she circles around and sits on the stool in the middle of the stage.
She’s beautiful. And somehow overlooked during my search.
She’s wearing a short ivory dress and a denim jacket with brown cowgirl boots. She bares her thighs as she lifts her feet to rest on the bottom rail, but she’s careful to push her dress between her legs so she doesn’t provide a peep show to the crowd.
She strums the borrowed guitar a few times and then leans into the microphone. “Is everyone having a good time tonight?”
She’s American. I think. Her accent sounds different—not like what I’ve heard in the past.
The crowd erupts into a drunken cheer and I hear a man’s voice yell over the crowd, “It’s better now, sweet thing!”
She smiles and adjusts the mic. “I’m not from around here. It’s my first night in Australia.”
“Leave with me and I’ll make you feel right at home!” a man shouts from the back of the room.
She ignores the fat, ugly bastard yelling at her. “I don’t know what kind of music Australians like, but this has been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember.” She strums a few more chords. “This is ‘Crash Into Me’ by the Dave Matthews Band.”
She sings it slower than the original, putting her own twist on it. Her voice is raspy and sexy, her eyes closed. She oozes eroticism. She tilts her head and opens her eyes when she begins to sing the chorus. I swear it feels like she’s looking right in my direction, singing to me. “Oh, and you come craasshh … into me. And I come into … you … And I come into you … in a boy’s dream … in a boy’s dream.”
The stage lights shine in her face and common sense tells me she can’t see me sitting in the dark corner at the back of the club, but that doesn’t stop me from hoping.
She finishes the chorus and shuts her eyes again. Her long legs bounce against the rail of the stool to keep rhythm and I fall victim to her siren’s song. She has bewitched me. And I want her. She’s the one.

Have a eBook copy of Beauty from Pain to give away to one of you guys! Winners will be given a coupon code to download the format of their choice from Smashwords. Just fill out the rafflecopter below.








a Rafflecopter giveaway


 

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

The Dark (A Kin Series Novella) by Heather Self

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Source:  Received eBook copy from author in exchange for a fair and honest review.

From Goodreads:

Mary Anne Moore doesn't know what she is. She can’t explain why she has lived so long.

Or why she never gets sick.

Or why the dreams she has come true.

She has hidden herself as a lowly servant to the households of Dublin's English elite for decades, until the night that changes her life. Now her sole purpose is the child she never expected to have. She will do anything in her power to keep the black-eyed monsters from discovering him and turning him into one of them.

For Kieran Moore, the dark is an ever-present parasite, waiting to devour his humanity. His mother’s love and the girl in his dreams has kept it at bay for years, but the more time that passes—the longer he has to wait for her—the more it grows. When tragedy strikes, it is all he can do to keep from being consumed by the darkness that infects him. He must continue to hold on to the hope of peace her presence will bring him, because it’s not just his fate on the line, but that of the entire world.


My Thoughts:



4 stars:  Did I really change to Team Kieran?  Yes, yes I did.

I want to start by saying that this book really should be read AFTER reading the first book in the series.  It's the background story for Kieran and if I hadn't read THE ONE (Book 1) I think I would have been confused.

With that said, this book was not what I expected.  I knew it was Kieran's story but it started with his mother.  That part of the story is written in beautiful third person.  Yes you did hear me say that.  I'm not a fan of 3rd person, but this author has a way of making it work for me.

Anne has a wonderful and sad story to tell.  I loved her for her strength.  Carrying a baby with no husband during a time when people would not look kindly on that, Anne finds a way to do it with pose and strength.  Nothing would get in the way of keeping her baby safe, even her own feeling.  Talk about a badass female, Anne had it down.

I loved Alex.  He loves Anne but doesn't know what's going on with her unborn son.  I so wished I could have learned more about their sweet romance.  But this story really is about Kieran and the beginnings with his mother are told in snippets enough to help us understand who his mother is.

The second half of this book is from Kieran's POV.  I will admit that I really wanted more.  If I hadn't had the background of book one, I would have been lost but still it was not enough.  I did learn so much about Kieran and what kind of man he is.  I trust him, where I didn't at the end of The One.  I will say, too, that while I was Team Chase at the end of book one, I have changed to Team Kieran.  Let me make this perfectly clear (especially to Chase), it has nothing to do with loving Kieran more than Chase.  Instead, it has to do with how much Kieran loves Evy.  I think "I" love Chase more but Kieran needs Evy and I think she needs him too.

If you've read The One, then this book is a must.  If you haven't read The One, then get on that!


#CuddlesByVal ~ 1/30/13



This is my version of Waiting on Wednesday but with more cuddles, books I can't wait to cuddle for various reasons.

Available May 14th from HarperTeen

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At first, I merely saw his face, his hands on the window ledge. Then, his whole body as he swung himself through the window. Only I could not see what he swung on.
Until, one day, I told my dream self to look down. And it was then that I saw. He had climbed on a rope. I knew without asking that the rope had been one of my own tying.

Rachel is trapped in a tower, held hostage by a woman she’s always called Mama. Her golden hair is growing rapidly, and to pass the time, she watches the snow fall and sings songs from her childhood, hoping someone, anyone, will hear her.

Wyatt needs time to reflect or, better yet, forget about what happened to his best friend, Tyler. That’s why he’s been shipped off to the Adirondacks in the dead of winter to live with the oldest lady in town. Either that, or no one he knows ever wants to see him again.

Dani disappeared seventeen years ago without a trace, but she left behind a journal that’s never been read, not even by her overbearing mother…until now.

A #1 New York Times bestselling author, Alex Flinn knows her fairy tales, and Towering is her most mind-bending interpretation yet. Dark and mysterious, this reimagining of Rapunzel will have readers on the edge of their seats wondering where Alex will take them next!


Why am I waiting to cuddle this one?  I totally love these fairy tale stories.  This the second one I've seen lately that's based on this fairy tale and I want to read BOTH.  Really LOVE this cover too.  Yes, it is a girl in a dress but I love the long hair and the snow.  So pretty.

What about you?  What ya waiting to cuddle?  Leave me a comment.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Cover reveal ~ STAINED by Cheryl Rainfield

From Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Available November 19, 2013

Sometimes you have to be your own hero.





Book Description: 

In this heart-wrenching and suspenseful teen thriller, sixteen-year-old Sarah Meadows longs for "normal." Born with a port-wine stain covering half her face, all her life she’s been plagued by stares, giggles, bullying, and disgust. But when she’s abducted on the way home from school, Sarah is forced to uncover the courage she never knew she had, become a hero rather than a victim, and learn to look beyond her face to find the beauty and strength she has inside. It’s that—or succumb to a killer.



From the author:


Like I did with SCARS and HUNTED, I drew on some of my own experiences of bullying, abuse, and trauma to write STAINED and to give it greater emotional depth. Like Sarah in STAINED, I experienced abduction, imprisonment, periods of forced starvation, mind control, and having my life threatened. And like Sarah, I tried hard to fight against my abuser, keep my own sense of self, and escape. I hope readers will see Sarah's strength and courage, and appreciate her emotional growth as she reclaims herself.






Book Trailer:



New cover ~ While he was Away by Karen Schreck

Guest post

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While He Was Away Walmart-Exclusive Cover Reveal
and My Top Tips for Writing
Even When the Writing Gets Tough
By Karen Schreck

My birthday falls in January, just a few days after New Year’s Day.  This January, I received an incredible gift from my publisher, Sourcebooks Fire.  My young adult novel, While He Was Away, is being released nation-wide into Walmart with a brand new cover! 

When my editor at Sourcebooks, Leah Hultenschmidt, graciously asked if I’d be open to this possibility last fall, I blinked, breathed deep, confirmed I wasn’t dreaming, and said, “Yes!”  I held on to the possibility until it became a reality.  Then, and only then, did I celebrate.

I won’t speak for all writers, but for me, writing is an act of faith.  I love the work deeply, or I wouldn’t do it.  I’ve generated a lot of pages that have never seen the light of day, written multiple novels that I’ve relegated to folders on my laptop.  Keeping the faith in anything, especially writing, can be hard.

The fact that Sourcebooks believed enough in While He Was Away to bring it to life the first time felt like a much-needed confirmation of years of hard work.  The fact that they are standing behind my book again in this way . . . well, it feels like a miracle.  I’m truly grateful.

Without further ado, here are my Top Writing Tips (they’ve help me a lot; I hope they help you in some way):

1.    Read a lot. Read voraciously. Read like a writer. Read some more. Read people who write in your genre or in a style that is similar to yours and take note of how they do what they do.  Read people who write in a completely different way to keep your head clear and give you new ideas.  Just. Keep.  Reading.
2.    Develop a ritual for your writing.  I wouldn’t think of telling you what to do.  You need to find what works for you, and sometimes that changes with your circumstances.  This year, I’ve been working at an ad agency in the city.  My ritual is to hunker down in the quiet car on the train and GET A LOT DONE.  Previously I’ve written in the very same quiet corner of my local library.  In basements.  On couches.  In bed.  By candlelight.  I’ve found that consistency and ritual can trigger my creativity.  Ring the bell and I’ll salivate.  Kind of like that.
3.    Don’t be afraid to be messy in your work.  Don’t be afraid to push forward even though it isn’t perfect.   Nothing is perfect!  Embrace that reality, and be kind to yourself.  And forgiving of the words on the page.
4.    Fall in love with revision.  “I’m not a writer,” I once heard a writer say.  “I am a re-writer.”  I LOVE that.  I love the word revision.  Re-vision.  Seeing again, anew, as if for the first time.  Revision gives great perspective.  And I think it’s where the real work gets done.
5.    Never give up.  Keep the faith.  Years may pass.  But the more you write, the more the very act of writing becomes rewarding.  Writing is soul-work; it lends meaning to life.  That’s what I believe, and that’s what sees me through.  Publication—well, that a wonderful thing.  But the writing—that’s where it’s at.


Teaser Tuesday ~ 1/29/13

This is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.


To participate you:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
(Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


This week's teaser comes from....

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The Dark (A Kin Series Novella, 0.5) by Heather Self

Anne pouted, her bottom lip jutting out, and Alex couldn't resist.  He tugged her back to him, pulling the lip into his mouth and teasing it with his tongue.  Anne shivered in response, a breathy, "Please," the only word she could form.  Alex buried his face in her neck, his breaths shallow, "I want us to go about this properly, Anne." (Page 63)

Read this Sunday night.  Review will be coming soon.  It wasn't what I was expecting at all, but I liked it.

If you haven't seen my review of The One (the first book in this series), check it out here.

What ya think?  Have a teaser for me this week?  Leave me a comment.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Young Adult Giveaway Hop


Here's what's up for grabs....

Kindle or Nook pre-order of

Available March 19th

OR

Paperback preorder of

Available April 9th



Follow StuckInBooks and fill out the rafflecopter below. (INT)


a Rafflecopter giveaway

 
Now hop along to the next blog.....

Luck of the Draw (Shamrock Falls, #2) by Kelley Vitollo

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Source:  Received an eBook from Entangled Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.

From Goodreads:

Rowan McKinley isn’t looking for one wild night while vacationing in Vegas, but she gets it anyway when she meets professional poker player—and professional ladies’ man—Breck Wilder. Breck’s easygoing charm and lighthearted banter draw in the reserved Rowan, and though she’s always dreamed of the kind of forever love her best friends Sidney and Kade share, she’ll settle for one night with the charismatic player.

After their crazy one-night stand, Breck never expected to see the mysterious redhead again. So when he shows up at a Shamrock Falls B&B looking to get away for a few weeks and Rowan answers the door, he’s floored. Breck’s rolling-stone lifestyle and ill-fated history with women means he’s not interested in anything long-term. But the longer he stays at the B&B, the more he considers dropping the poker face and putting all his cards on the table…for Rowan.


My Thoughts:



5 stars - Definitely belongs in the Bliss line!

 I really am a fantasy reader.  Love the paranormal and such but contemporary is becoming a new favorite.  But the only way a contemporary works for me, though, is if I love the characters.  No one does incredible characters like Kelly Vitollo (Unless it's Nyrae Dawn doing the same thing in YA books - same author, heehee).

This series has a cute little home town.  It has Washington State rain storms.  It has interesting situations and fresh ideas but it's the characters I love.  I loved Kade and Sidney in the first book Lucky Break.  And I love Breck and Rowan in Luck of the Draw. 

I'll start with Breck, because I always like the guy the best!  Breck has been hurt before and he's given up on women for the long run.  He lives on the road playing poker and he likes it that way.  Besides all that, though, he's this great guy.  He generous and kind.  He loves taking care of Rowan, when she'll let him.  He loves to have fun and his sexy smile can melt hearts.  If Rowan can get past his broken heart, she'll find the best guy ever.

Rowan is this feisty, independent type that really just wants to be loved.  Having never felt like she's belonged, she's afraid of losing things.  She's attracted to Breck, who wouldn't be, but she needs more than a fling with him.  If Breck gives her a chance, she could heal his broken heart.

I did have some stress moments when I wanted to kick both these characters in the backside for making stupid choices.  But that's like life, right?  We screw up and we hope that those that care about us love us enough to understand.  I care enough about these characters that I'm so hoping there's a book 3 for this series just so I can get a glimpse of them again.  And dang it, it's time Jace got his act together! Hope he stars in book 3.

It was a quick read for me.  This is a Sunday afternoon quickie kinda book! Gonna love it, truly.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

Stacking MY Shelves ~ 1/27/13



Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.  Make sure to checkout her post with links to all the other participates.

Been kinda of a crazy week for books!  Here's ALL of them.

Bought


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Everbound by Brodi Ashton

Nikki Beckett could only watch as her boyfriend, Jack, sacrificed himself to save her, taking her place in the Tunnels of the Everneath for eternity — a debt that should’ve been hers. She’s living a borrowed life, and she doesn’t know what to do with the guilt. And every night Jack appears in her dreams, lost and confused and wasting away.

Desperate for answers, Nikki turns to Cole, the immortal bad boy who wants to make her his queen — and the one person least likely to help. But his heart has been touched by everything about Nikki, and he agrees to assist her in the only way he can: by taking her to the Everneath himself.

Nikki and Cole descend into the Everneath, only to discover that their journey will be more difficult than they’d anticipated — and more deadly. But Nikki vows to stop at nothing to save Jack — even if it means making an incredible sacrifice of her own.

In this enthralling sequel to Everneath, Brodi Ashton tests the bonds of destiny and explores the lengths we’ll go to for the ones we love


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Through the Ever Night (audio) by Veronica Rossi
Narrated by Michael Goldstrom


It's been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don't take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe's precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both.

Threatened by false friends, hidden enemies, and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night?

In this second book in her spellbinding Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi combines fantasy and dystopian elements to create a captivating love story as perilous as it is unforgettable

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Boundless by Cynthia Hand

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California - and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfil her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.




Oh I know it's not a book, but I spend some money I received for my birthday on these fun book items! 



That's a totally cool obsidian necklace and super fun bookmark from the wonderful Hebel Designs based on the fabulous 
Lux series by Jennifer L Armentrout. 


The bookmark says "Hey Kitten, want a cookie?"


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Review


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The Collector by Victoria Scott

From the publisher - thank you.

He makes good girls...bad.

Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence has made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple, weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big, red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal opportunity collector and doesn’t want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within 10 days.

Dante doesn’t know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky, Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect—he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector, and uncover emotions deeply buried


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Ethan (Brightest Kind of Darkness, # 0.5) by P.T. Michelle

From the author - thank you

Ethan Harris never thought monsters and darkness would consume his daily thoughts, but every night the same visions repeat in his dreams. He’s careful to project a semblance of normalcy, keeping the suffocating darkness locked inside. As much as he wishes he could focus on girls, sports, and cars like other seventeen-year-olds; nothing distracts him from his own demons or shines through.

Until Nara Collins crosses his path. The blonde fascinates and intrigues him, giving him a measure of peace he’s never felt before.

When Ethan discovers there’s more to Nara than she allows others to see, that she might have a unique secret of her own, suddenly his world comes into focus.

Note: Ethan is a novella PREQUEL to Brightest Kind of Darkness. This story will give some of Ethan’s background and lead up until the day he tells Nara there’s a bomb in the school.

 
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If You Stay by Courtney Cole (signed paperback)

From the author - thank you

24-year old Pax Tate is an asshole.
Seriously.

He’s a tattooed, rock-hard bad-boy with a bad attitude to match.

But he’s got his reasons.

His mother died when Pax was seven, leaving a hole in his heart filled with guilt although he doesn’t understand why. What he does know is that he and his dad are left alone and with more issues than they can count.

As Pax grew up, he tried to be the kid his father always wanted; the perfect golden boy, but it didn’t work. His dad couldn’t overcome his grief long enough to notice and Pax couldn’t keep up the impossible perfect façade.
So he slipped far, far from it.

Now, he uses drugs and women to cope with the ugliness, the black void that he doesn’t want to deal with. If he pretends that the emptiness isn’t there, then it isn’t, right?
Wrong.

And it’s never more apparent than when he meets Mila.
Sweet, beautiful Mila Hill is the fresh air to his hardened frown, the beauty to his ugly heart. He doesn’t know how to not hurt her, but he quickly realizes that he’s got to figure it out because he needs her to breathe.

When memories of his mother’s death resurface from where he’s repressed them for so long, Mila is there to catch him when the guilt starts making sense. Mila is the one…the one who can save him from his broken troubled heart; from his issues, from the emptiness.

But only if he can stop being an asshole long enough to allow it.

He knows that. And he’s working on it.

But is that enough to make her stay?


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Fuse (Pure, #2) by Julianna Baggott

From the publisher - thank you

When the world ended, those who dwelled within the Dome were safe. Inside their glass world the Pures live on unscarred, while those outside—the Wretches—struggle to survive amidst the smoke and ash.

Believing his mother was living among the Wretches, Partridge escaped from the Dome to find her. Determined to regain control over his son, Willux, the leader of the Pures, unleashes a violent new attack on the Wretches. It’s up to Pressia Belze, a young woman with her own mysterious past, to decode a set of cryptic clues from the past to set the Wretches free.

An epic quest that sweeps readers into a world of beautiful brutality, Fuse continues the story of two people fighting to save their futures—and change the fate of the world.



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Out in Blue by Sarah Gilman

From the publisher - thank you

In a violent world where fallen archangels are hunted for their valuable plumage, Wren knows one thing for certain: the human woman who saved him from a poacher attack will die if she stays with him. The demon responsible for his parents’ gruesome deaths two decades ago pines for the chance to rip apart any woman who stands under Wren’s wing.

Wren doesn’t expect Ginger to stay by his side once she discovers his ability to drain life with a mere touch, yet she lingers. When an unusual talent of her own reveals the location of Wren’s father, Wren’s isolated world implodes. With the help of the demon protectors he’s sworn never to trust again, Wren risks everything to rescue his father, confront the demon who stalks his and Ginger’s every step, and claim his eternity with the most courageous woman he’s ever known.




Add to Goodreads
The Dark (a Kin Series Novella) by Heather Self 

From the author - thank you.

Mary Anne Moore doesn't know what she is. She can’t explain why she has lived so long.

Or why she never gets sick.

Or why the dreams she has come true.

She has hidden herself as a lowly servant to the households of Dublin's English elite for decades, until the night that changes her life. Now her sole purpose is the child she never expected to have. She will do anything in her power to keep the black-eyed monsters from discovering him and turning him into one of them.

For Kieran Moore, the dark is an ever-present parasite, waiting to devour his humanity. His mother’s love and the girl in his dreams has kept it at bay for years, but the more time that passes—the longer he has to wait for her—the more it grows. When tragedy strikes, it is all he can do to keep from being consumed by the darkness that infects him. He must continue to hold on to the hope of peace her presence will bring him, because it’s not just his fate on the line, but that of the entire world


Gift for my classroom


The wonderful Andrea, from Bookish Babe, send me an ARC of Under the Never Sky for my classroom shelf.  Thank you so much, girl!  

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Think that's it! I feel so overwhelmed with all the books I have to read after a week like this.  Seems like a GOOD problem to have though!!

What about you?  What's stacking your shelves this week?