Review: The Ruining

The Ruining
By: Anna Collomore
Release Date: February 7, 2013

Description:
Annie Phillips is thrilled to leave her past behind and begin a shiny new life on Belvedere Island, as a nanny for the picture-perfect Cohen family. In no time at all, she falls in love with the Cohens, especially with Libby, the beautiful young matriarch of the family. Life is better than she ever imagined. She even finds romance with the boy next door.

All too soon cracks appear in Annie's seemingly perfect world. She's blamed for mistakes she doesn't remember making. Her bedroom door comes unhinged, and she feels like she's always being watched. Libby, who once felt like a big sister, is suddenly cold and unforgiving. As she struggles to keep up with the demands of her new life, Annie's fear gives way to frightening hallucinations. Is she tumbling into madness, or is something sinister at play?

The Ruining is a complex ride through first love, chilling manipulation, and the terrifying depths of insanity.

Review:
It never ceases to amaze me the amount of power the act of persuasion and manipulation has over some people. Sure there might be easier targets than others but still it doesn’t stop fascinating me. This book was pure manipulation in its highest form, it was crazy with a capitol C and I loved every minute of it. Psychological in all the right ways.

We meet Annie who has just moved out of her home in Detroit to California to be a nanny to a family she met online. That alone is enough to be shady in itself, but she wanted to get out the family looked like a very happy all American family. She was excited to finally go there and get away from her family and all the bad memories she had there. She arrived there and everything seemed to be going great, she was taking care of Zoe mostly as Libby would take care of baby Jackson. Walker, the husband was there but not really, you know the type a businessman that doesn’t want to get in the middle of anything.

As Annie was taking care of Zoe she knocked over some boxes and saw some papers she probably shouldn’t have seen, this of course angered Libby and now begins the strong manipulation. Libby would make Annie feel like she was her best friend, even like a sister. She would make suggestions to her and if she didn’t follow it she would get angry and that caused Annie to want to please her even more. Annie is obviously not a very strong person if she was manipulated so easily but still it was an interesting thing to watch, she’s quite dependant on other people.

From the very beginning of the book you knew something was off with Libby, and even if you already knew what it was it was the unfolding of the whole situation that made this book exciting. To watch the layers fall from here and there and the crazy manipulating sociopath would emerge. But Annie the ever gullible and easily manipulated still to the very end seemed to want to be in Libby’s good graces, that was annoying but again she is weak. Throughout the book she forms a relationship with her neighbor, Owen. I think it’s a healthy relationship but I also think that maybe Annie needs to learn how to be strong and independent.

Overall the book was good, again seeing something unfold that you already know is going to happen is fun because you don’t know exactly how it will happen. I really loved that Libby would call Annie Nanny and say no I’m calling you Annie, now Nanny what are you doing. Too funny! And Annie started believing her name was Nanny. What great manipulation. Check the book out if you get a chance!

Disclaimer:
I received this book from NetGalley and Razorbill, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!

Wonderful Wednesday...

The week is halfway through - thank goodness because I could really use the weekend right about now.  I don't know what it is, maybe it's the time of the year and it's so busy at work but I'm going insane with the absolute need to get away from all of this.  I'm crossing my fingers, because I know I'm ready to make that leap.  I just hope there is someone on the other side to catch me sometime in the near future if you know what I mean lol. 

Don't you hate it when you get so mad that tears are bound to happen no matter how much you try and make them not shed, and don't you hate it that when you are trying to yell or prove a point that your voice cracks at the most inopportune time.  Yes that is how my morning has been so far.  I'm tired ... ready to go home.  Or at least go to lunch so I can take a break outside. Get some fresh air, let all the craziness out. 

I've been reading a lot of psychological books lately, I'm reading one right now, review to come soon of course.  And it just amazes me how the mind works, and manipulation and how you don't even know you're being manipulated.  It's crazy what people can do.  I think it's a gift, or a curse depending on how you use it.  Some people use it for evil and others for good.  But overall I think it's just whatever is good for them at that moment.  Maybe I'm just jealous that some people can do that. 

Oh jealousy, the big green hulk of emotions.  I'm jealous of people who go out there and do things, because honestly I'm just too scared to try and if I think I'm going to fail then I will definitely not try at all.  But I'm ready to take the plunge.  I'm ready for new beginnings in new surroundings and who knows maybe even new friends.  I could use some of those.

I know you're probably wondering what this post is about if you haven't figured it out already.  I'm just having a bad day and needed to let it out.  How about you, how is your day going?  Or even week?  Hopefully better than mine lol.

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm "Waiting on":

Never Forget (Memories, #1)
by Emma Hart
Release Date: February 22, 2013

Description:
A city girl.
A small town boy.
A summer they'll never forget.

Spending the summer at her Grammy's in Lilac Bay, Devon, is city girl Alexis 'Lexy' Edwards idea of hell. That is, until she reconnects with her childhood friend, Jen, and meets Alec Johnson.

Alec is the kind of guy Lexy knows she needs to stay away from. He's the village flirt, ridiculously hot and very dangerous to her self control. But there's a problem – she can't seem to keep him out, even though she knows he'll break her heart.

As Alec slowly strips away Lexy's defences and the two embark on a summer romance she never wanted, their feelings grow to more than either expected. But nothing lasts forever, and reality intrudes.

As her world is shaken to it's core, Lexy's self made prediction comes true when she discovers she's spent six weeks surrounded by secrets. Kept out by her family and the only guy she's ever trusted, she falls apart.

And when Grammy tells her that 'you might not end up where you wanted to be, but you'll always end up where you're meant to be,' she has to figure out if her meant to be is back home in London, or if it's been in Devon the whole time.

Teaser Tuesday: Venom

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: •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!

Here's my teaser for the week:

"You must always be mindful. Even in the waters of this city— no, especially in the waters of this city!—evil flows silently among us like venom. We are at its mercy."


Venom
By Fiona Paul
(Kindle Locations 186-190).

Review: Blaze (or Love in the Time of Supervillains)

Blaze (or Love in the Time of Supervillains)
By: Laurie Boyle Crompton
Release Date: February 1, 2013

Description:
Blaze is tired of spending her life on the sidelines, drawing comics and feeling invisible. She's desperate for soccer star Mark to notice her. And when her BFF texts Mark a photo of Blaze in sexy lingerie, it definitely gets his attention. After a hot date in the back of her minivan, Blaze is flying high, but suddenly Mark's feelings seem to have been blasted by a freeze-ray gun, and he dumps her. Blaze gets her revenge by posting a comic strip featuring uber-villain Mark the Shark. Mark then retaliates by posting her "sext" photo, and, overnight, Blaze goes from Super Virgin Girl to Super Slut. That life on the sidelines is looking pretty good right about now...

Review:
Every now and then you get a book and you can’t help but constantly stare at the cover because it looks so cool, and then the title of the book also just as good as the cover. But then you read the description and you think alright this is definitely something I want to read, because I’ve never read anything on the subject of comics or as much of a fan girl as this book was, and it didn’t disappoint at all. The cover was great, the characters, and the story were all around good.  It was a quick read essentially about a girl who just wants a guy to notice her.


We meet Blaze who is a complete nerdy comic book fan girl, I can totally imagine her in my head, the way she acts, talks everything. She’s fighting hard to get away from this pseudo soccer mom role she’s been thrown into because of her parents divorce and attempt actually getting a life of her own and she plans on starting with getting the attention of Mark, the super sexy coach of her brother’s soccer team. Finally she gets his attention and everything seems to be going great between them. Even if they really only had one date so far, but her brother is constantly trying to warn her, but let’s face it who’s going to listen at that age.

Eventually things go south between the two of them and Blaze who is completely hurt decides to retaliate by making a comic book of the whole situation, calling him Mark the Shark. She’s hurt and broken, but her comic sells off the shelf and everyone loves it that is except Mark. This is where he in turn retaliates but somehow it gets completely blown out of proportion that not even he can stop what is happening to Blaze. It’s unfortunately that there is so much bullying going on in schools, and I don’t know how but throughout the chapters where Blaze is repeatedly bullied by other students never once do you notice any teachers trying to stop them, this is the saddest part.

She decides to run off to meet her dad, trying to run away from her problems and start fresh but if she would have listened to her brother in the first place she would have realized it was not worth her time and effort. It’s sad to see this realization for her, but it was necessary for her to finally move on and agree with everyone around her that they were right about her father. This is also a really pivotal scene where you can see just how much Josh really does love his sister.  Family is an important part of our lives and we should always respect them, even if we don't completely agree with them.

There were several lessons that I think Blaze learned throughout the book. She learned that sometimes looks can be deceiving; she learned that one the hard way and in relation to her father as well. She also learned the hard way that sometimes retaliation is not worth it, after all look where it got her. And most importantly I believe she shouldn’t rush into things she doesn’t’ know anything about, she seemed very naive in the beginning of the book. But overall I really enjoyed it and it really started picking up half way through the book so much so that I had to finish it the same day.

Really great overall characters and realistic events that could easily happen to some people, maybe not all at the same time, but who knows it might. Great book and I can’t wait to see what the author has in store for us next time.
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Contact the Author:

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/LaurieBoyleCrompton
website http://lboylecrompton.com/
twitter username: @lbcrompton

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Disclaimer:
I received this book from NetGalley and Sourcebooks, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!

Musing Monday

MUSING MONDAYS… is a weekly event where MizB at Should be Reading will ask a book/reading-related question, and you answer with your own thoughts on the topic.

This week Musing Mondays asks you to muse about one of the following each week…
• Describe one of your reading habits.
• Tell us what book(s) you recently bought for yourself or someone else, and why you chose that/those book(s).
• Tell us what you’re reading right now — what you think of it, so far; why you chose it; what you are (or, aren’t) enjoying it.

So I guess today I'm going to go with the second one.  Because I just finished three books and I'm not reading anything until I decide what I'm reading next lol.  So what did I recently buy for myself.  Now does it count if it was free - because I just got some free books from Amazon for my kindle that really looked promising.  Please see them below and if you're interested definitely get them, again they are free on Amazon, can't beat that.

My Boyfriend Merlin      On Thin Ice      Eternal Youth

Are you reading or have purchased anything interesting?  Any more free books out there I should check out?

Review: Girls Don't Take Karate

Girls Don't Take Karate

Written By Susan Sweenie

Illustrated By: Jillian Dister

 

Description:

One little girl who is in love with the color PINK and all things "girly" discovers her love of karate and how fun it can be to try something new and different. With the help of her parents and karate instructor, she learns that if she tries her best, she can do anything!

 

Review:

Let me start off saying I don't usually review books written for children, but when this author approached my to review her book I couldn't resist.  Especially since I have to lovely little girls at home, one who is six and is just starting to learn how to read.  The minute I received this book I couldn't wait to sit down with the girls and read it to them.

 

From the very beginning of the book it reminded me of my six year old.  Although everything doesn't have to be pink for her she would rather play dress up, make up or anything else super girlie.  When I started reading to her she even said to me Girls don't take Karate, that's for boys.  I continued reading the book and my two year old was enjoying it greatly she even demonstrated some karate chops and kicks, it was too cute. 

 

By the end of the book I myself felt more empowered by this story.  I completely agree that girls can do anything boys can do and immediately wanted to look into putting my child into karate.  It's actually something I've though of in the past but this just made me think of it more.  She even told me I want a pink belt, as well all know there are no pink belts but it showed me that she was really paying attention to the book and they both enjoyed it greatly.  I have to say it was a book I actually enjoyed myself and would definitely recommend it to young girls and mothers who want to try and get their kids out of their shells.  

 

I was really happy and honored to be able to review this book so I want to thank Susan Sweenie for sending this over to me.  I will definitely make sure to share it with as many people as possible.  Thanks for the really great read.

 

And let me just say the illustrations throughout the book depicted the story perfectly.  It was great to see them come to live from words to pictures.  Thanks to both the author and the illustrator.

Fumbling Friday

So I'm here, just fumbling throughout my day with obstacle after obstacle.

First and foremost let me just say TGIF, seriously it's been one of those weeks full of temper tantrums (think door slamming), headaches, annoyances (and that's just from work), too many sleepless nights, hours of homework, food tantrums (and that's just from the kids), then there have been cough coughing all over the place (their daddy).  I Lysol my place a lot because I refuse to get sick this year and knock on wood, so far so good.

So I got word today that my application for BEA 2013 has been declined with no option to contest it.  So that's freaking fabulous right?  It's all good I still have netgalley and whatever :-( It still would have been fun to go, but it's okay I will keep doing my own thing.  I think I get enough books and I have more than enough to read, so I will just save money by not having to go into the city.  Bummer though.

I woke up, no lie with the worst migraine I've had in a while - was even nauseous because of it.  It's slightly better now a couple hours later.

Oh there is no water at work, literally the water is turned off because of a water break in the pipes or something.  Mind you it's 12 degrees outside so I can only imagine all the water main breaks that are starting to happen but really, no water!!! I don't even live close to work so it's not like I can go home and use the bathroom.  Ugh we all have to go through things sometimes right?  Oh well gross but yeah.

There is one good thing though - yes it's Friday.  And even though I have no clue what I'm doing this weekend I'm hoping to have a really good time doing whatever it is.  Maybe I'll finally take the girls bowling.

Also hey can you believe next week is February!  Where did the month go?  I'm even behind on my Goodreads Challenge reading goal lol that's so unlike me. 

How about you - how has your week gone?  Anything interesting happen?

Waiting on Wednesday!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm "Waiting on":

Our Song
By Jordanna Fraiberg
Release Date: May 2, 2013

Description:
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.

Review: Hysteria

Hysteria
By: Megan Miranda
Release Date: February 5, 2013

Description:
Another gripping psychological thriller from the author of the highly acclaimed debut novel Fracture.

Mallory killed her boyfriend, Brian. She can't remember the details of that night but everyone knows it was self-defense, so she isn't charged. But Mallory still feels Brian's presence in her life. Is it all in her head? Or is it something more? In desperate need of a fresh start, Mallory is sent to Monroe, a fancy prep school where no one knows her . . . or anything about her past.But the feeling follows her, as do her secrets. Then, one of her new classmates turns up dead. As suspicion falls on Mallory, she must find a way to remember the details of both deadly nights so she can prove her innocence-to herself and others.

In another riveting tale of life and death, Megan Miranda's masterful storytelling brings readers along for a ride to the edge of sanity and back again.

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Megan Miranda is the author of Fracture. She studied Biology and Anthropology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she twice won a coveted award for research in Bioengineering. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and two young children.

Links
Megan Miranda's website

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Review:
I never got a chance to read Fracture, or at least haven’t really had the time but when I saw this cover and this premise I was definitely curious about this book. So I was excited when it was accepted at Net galley and I was able to read this book for review. It was really one of those psychological kinds of books; you didn’t know what was real and what was all in her mind. I loved that because really who doesn’t like surprises.


So we start off with Mallory having just killed her boyfriend but not remembering the events of the night, only that it was self defense, well at least that’s what her lawyer sold to everyone. Now that Brian is dead, his mother has gone a little off her rocker and Mallory needs to get a restraining order. It gets so bad she has to move and go to a new school. Here is where she rekindles her friendship with Reid.

Monroe used to be a school her father attended, good private school, but even they have their secrets as do most. Somehow everyone seems to know about Mallory’s past and because of this she’s ousted in the beginning, until Reid finds her. He seems like a sweet guy although a little lost himself. Regardless there is another boy who gives Mallory the creeps, his name is Jason and there is just a little something off about him.  Every turn he seems to be doing something to someone, usually in a harassing manor.  There are pieces to the puzzle there but Mallory just can't seem to put them together.  As if she's missing the bigger picture.

Needless to say he turns up dead, in her room, as she’s covered in blood – can we say déjà vu? But did she do it? Or was she completely out with her sleeping pill that someone is trying to set her up. This folks is when things start getting interesting. But I’ll have to leave it at that because it’s a book you are going to have to experience yourself. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book like this, yes killing but not a psychological part to it, or at least not in a while. I have to say I rather liked it. I hope you get a chance to check out this book as well.

Let’s talk about that cover, usually I don’t really comment much on it because it’s a beautiful girl in a beautiful magical place or something like that. But this one reminds me of the book so well and it just fits perfectly. She’s there, but not completely there. The picture frame is covering her but then again it’s not, sort of. The background definitely looks like it could belong to the Monroe school. It’s just a great cover and I think that they did a great job it, had to give the cover creators a little nod.

Overall the book was interesting and will keep you guessing at what exactly is going on. I know I was probably half the time he he. Check it out. And just for your interest here’s the dictionary definition of Hysteria, only because I was curious myself:

hys•te•ri•a
noun
1. an uncontrollable outburst of emotion or fear, often characterized by irrationality, laughter, weeping, etc.
2. Psychoanalysis . a psychoneurotic disorder characterized by violent emotional outbreaks, disturbances of sensory and motor functions, and various abnormal effects due to autosuggestion.
3. Psychiatry. Conversion disorder.

Disclaimer:
I received this book from NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA Children's Books, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!

Teaser Tuesday: Blaze

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: •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!

Here's my teaser for the week:

Pressing my foot on the gas, I coax Superturd to hurry its plump minivan ass up.  I strain forward against my seatbelt.

"I can't believe she's resorting to this," Dylan says.

Blaze (A Love in the Time of Supervillains)
By Laurie Boyle Crompton
Page 25

Musing Monday: Reading

MUSING MONDAYS… is a weekly event where MizB at Should be Reading
Musing Mondays asks you to muse about one of the following each week…

• Describe one of your reading habits.
• Tell us what book(s) you recently bought for yourself or someone else, and why you chose that/those book(s).
• Tell us what you’re reading right now — what you think of it, so far; why you chose it; what you are (or, aren’t) enjoying it.

I'm going to pick two out of three for today. 

Reading Habits - I read whenever I can whether during lunch at work or at home, even though it's been getting more difficult at home because I've just been too tired lately and end up falling asleep lol.  But that's when I read.  Sometimes I'll go from Kindle, to Computer to Android.  Literally in that order, I'll just read from one thing to the next thing depending on where I am and what I'm doing.  So sometimes it feels like I'm constantly reading and other times it feels like I'm not reading enough. What's you're reading habit?

Reading right now - I need to say this more often because sometimes I'm reading more than one book at a time, believe sometimes it's easy and sometimes it's not.  And you know sometimes there is always a favorite out of the two.  So right now I'm reading Hysteria by Megan Miranda and Blaze by Laurie Boyle Crompton.  Both are from Net Galley and upcoming books so I want to get that review out and stay on good standing with the publishers for future book releases.  They are both really interesting and so different from one another.  Hysteria is more like who did it and what the hell is going on since I'm halfway done with the book already that would should be up for review soon.  Blaze I'm still in the beginning phases but I can already tell it's more of an up beat book and easily flowing with laughter.  We shall see how that continues to go on.

What about you?  What are you reading right now and why?

Review: Me, Him, Them, and It

Me, Him, Them, and It

By: Caela Carter
Release Date: February 5, 2013

Description:

Teen pregnancy isn't just what it looks like on "16 and Pregnant;" it can be heartbreaking and emotional, and utterly gripping—as in this debut novel.

When Evelyn decided to piss off her parents with a bad reputation, she wasn't planning to ruin her valedictorian status. She also wasn't planning to fall for Todd-the guy she was just using for sex. And she definitely wasn't planning on getting pregnant. When Todd turns his back on her, Evelyn's not sure where to go. Can a distant mother, a cheating father, an angry best friend, and a (thankfully) loving aunt with adopted daughters of her own help Evelyn make the heart-wrenching decisions that follow?

With the popularity of Juno, Teen Mom, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager, this novel has a built-in audience. Gripping, heartfelt, and responsible, Me, Him, Them, and It is not to be missed!

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CAELA CARTER is a student at the New School's MFA program, concentrating in writing for children. Currently a middle school librarian, she spent six years teaching, and one summer educating and counseling young mothers and pregnant teenagers. She also writes for Teen Writers Bloc, a blog on children's literature. This is her first novel.

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Review:
Teen pregnancy is never an easy topic to talk or write about and in most cases even deal with, but it happens and quite often unfortunately. This book describes what happens when Evelyn finds out that she is pregnant. She doesn’t know what she is going to do, whether to keep it, give it up, abort it and after she makes that decision what will she do afterwards. This is her journey.
To begin with even before finding out she was pregnant she seemed to have her own issues. Her parents are like zombies going through the day to day without really acknowledging her because they have their own problems. Evelyn is extremely cynical and doesn’t really want to exist but at the same time she’s doing all these things so that someone can finally hear her and sees her for what she really is, lost. She pretends not to care about Todd, the baby’s father but she really does. Even going so far as keeping their whole relationship a secret, which is never a good thing. Her best friend Lizzie is this wild child who is trying to find her father.

After her parents are finally knowledgeable about her pregnancy they work out a plan for her to go to live with her aunt for the rest of the school year. This is all her own choice because she doesn’t want anyone to know she is pregnant. But even as she moves to her aunt’s house everything isn’t as happy as she thought it would be there. Again, everyone has their own issues they have to deal with but they are all trying to help Evelyn the best way they can, even if sometimes it seems as if she doesn’t want or need it. She befriends another pregnant girl at her new school. Evelyn completely sees the difference between herself and her Maryellie, whereas her friend really wants the baby and Evelyn is still on the fence about the whole thing.
What I liked most about this book was that while Evelyn was trying to make her final decision on what to do about the baby that’s growing inside her you can see the different dynamic and family types that are out there with her own friends and family. Her aunt is adopted who is married to a woman and they both adopted two little girls. Her parents are splitting up and look how well that turned out for her. Her best friend is from a single parent home and is desperately trying to find her father. The baby’s daddy Todd doesn’t want anything to do with anything. But I don’t even think she realizes all the different people around her that could so easily help her make the decision she needs to make.

This story was all around great, and realistic in so many ways. I think young adults can definitely relate to Evelyn and wanting things to be normal, but a baby changes everything. Even if you don’t want it to, it definitely does. This book had me in tears by the end and it was just wonderfully written and an adventure into a young adults mind during this trying time. I loved every minute of it and don’t like any of the characters any less for what happened and what had to have happened.

Disclaimer:

I received this book from NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA Children's Books, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!

Blog Tour: Watch Me Disappear - Review/Excerpt/Giveaway

Watch Me Disappear
By: Diane Vanaskie Mulligan
Release Date: August 20, 2012

Description:
Lizzie Richards isn’t excited to be starting over at a new school for her senior year, but she’s trying to take her mother’s advice and make the most of it—the only way she can: By disobeying her strict parents’ rules. Lizzie’s father has moved the family around every few years to advance his career, so she has never had a chance to develop the kind of “BFF” relationships she thinks most kids have. She’s bracing herself for another lonely year at her third high school when her neighbor Maura gets sick of watching her little brother when she could be partying. Thanks to Maura’s plotting, Lizzie becomes everyone’s new favorite babysitter. Seeing her opportunity, Lizzie decides to break her mother’s rules by using Maura’s computer to create a secret Email address and Facebook account. She is quickly friended by Missy, a fellow transfer student as eager for a friend as she is. Things are looking up for Lizzie until Maura’s ex-boyfriend Paul sets his eye on Missy. Caught between her new best friend and the neighbor whose friendship promises instant popularity, Lizzie doesn’t know what to do—because she’s fallen for Paul, too.

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Review
This story really had me from the very beginning. Maybe it was the very nature of the main character and her cynicism that I can completely relate to or maybe it was just the story itself. You know how some people always think the grass is greener on the other side, that is until you get there. People are very fickle and can never decide exactly what they want and this is very true of teenagers. At least that’s my experience and it goes without saying that it is the same in this book.


We meet Lizzie who has recently moved to a new town the beginning of summer, so here is her chance to reinvent herself and make some friends before she starts her senior year in high school. But with her parents being extremely strict it’s hard to try and be social with everyone she wants to be. Her neighbor seems very two faced but her mom wants her to be like her just because she’s popular. But even popular people like Maura have their secrets. Then there is the ever perfect and outgoing Missy who she meets online. Things are great between them, that is until Paul gets in the middle.

Paul is someone who befriends Lizzie but in her eyes it’s only so that he could get closer to Missy. No one but herself knows how she feels about Paul and again I can completely relate to Lizzie and this love she has for a boy who just doesn’t see her in the same fashion. When her heart breaks, so does mine. That’s how much into the character I am. She’s a cynic, who tries to fit in with the popular kids, but is that really what she wants?

Sometimes when you lead a sheltered life and your are given just that small taste of freedom things can get out of control before you know it, and when you are young this tends to happen more often. There are so many secrets teenagers keep between themselves and others but there are always deeper lying issues that sometimes need to be brought out into the forefront.

I used to think the line between good and bad was so clear-cut. That’s what my parents always taught me. But senior year, I saw the good in people I once saw as villains, and I saw an awful lot of bad in myself. You just never know what’s beneath the surface until you start poking at it. I used to be jealous of kids who had a normal high school experience, but now I see that no one does. There is no such thing as normal. That’s pretty reassuring when you think about it.

Overall this book was a really great read; I couldn’t put it down and was so intrigued by the main character where I just found myself rooting for her so many times. But she is more like a real person where she doesn’t know what she wants and therefore sometimes misses out on things that could have been. Again I sympathize with this character and I can’t wait to read anything else by this author because I respect the way the characters were written.
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Excerpt:

from Chapter 1:

I swear, every time we move to another town and I have to start over at another school, my mother looks at me and thinks, “Maybe this time she’ll make some friends.” She’s a realist. She never advises me to go out there and be myself. Instead she tells me to use this fresh start to reinvent myself, which means to fix whatever is wrong with me.

All I want is to be invisible. My plan for senior year at my new school: Get straight A’s and get into a top-tier college. But this move is different from all the others. This time, my dad keeps reminding me, we’re moving home, to the town where he grew up. This isn’t Texas (which is like another planet) or California (which is like another universe). My entire life, this has been the one place we’ve always returned to, but up until now, only for short visits. There’s the park where I learned to ride a bike, the ice cream shop that makes the world’s best mint chocolate chip, the hill behind my grandmother’s house where my brother and I used to go sledding on snowy Christmases. Maybe this time I can let my guard down a little and not just be the quiet new girl. Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking.

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About the Author

Diane Vanaskie Mulligan began writing Watch Me Disappear during an after-school writing club she moderates for high school students. This is her first novel. She holds a BA in American Studies from Mount Holyoke College and a Master’s degree in teaching from Simmons College. When she isn’t teaching or writing, she’s the managing editor at The Worcester Review and the director of The Betty Curtis Worcester County Young Writers’ Conference You can also find her occasionally strumming her guitar and singing at various bars in central Massachusetts, where she lives with her husband.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Linkedin

Links to Buy:

Amazon Kindle Store | Smashwords | Createspace | Kobo
Sony eBook Store | Diesel eBook Store | Barnes and Noble

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Giveaway!!!

There will be 3 random winners.  Anyone who comments throughout the entire tour will be entered to win, the prize is a $10.00 gift certificate to Amazon.  So make sure you leave a comment for your chance to win one of the 3 $10.00 gift cards!!

Booking Through Thursday: Winter Reading?

A weekly meme about (mostly) books and reading. Hosted at Booking Through Thursday.

This weeks question is:

It’s the depth of winter here where I live right now … what books do you like to read when it’s snowy and white? What books do you read to evoke a real feeling of winter (good or bad)?

I haven't done one of these in a while.  But I'm back!!! Miss me? 

Honestly I don't want to think of winter at all, if I could I would live in flip flops!  So in the dead of winter (I'm from the north so I know all about snow and freezing temperatures) I will read books about Summer.  Because that's what I wish for.  I don't want to read books about snow where people can't move around or do anything, unless it's a nice steamy snowed in kind of book he he.  I don't do the winter feeling in books because I have enough winter feeling outside.  For real, I just read whatever I want to read next.  Doesn't matter the season, the day or anything just what I want to read next.  I've got my schedule thing going between net galley, personal reads, and blog tours. 

So overall - I read what I want when I want no matter what it looks like outside.  If it snows outside that just means I have more time to read what I want lol. 

How about you?  Do you read specifically towards the weather?

Waiting on Wednesday!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm "Waiting on":

The Rules of Disappearing
By: Ashley Elston
Release Date: May 14, 2013

Description:
She’s been six different people in six different places: Madeline in Ohio, Isabelle in Missouri, Olivia in Kentucky . . . But now that she’s been transplanted to rural Louisiana, she has decided that this fake identity will be her last.


Witness Protection has taken nearly everything from her. But for now, they’ve given her a new name, Megan Rose Jones, and a horrible hair color. For the past eight months, Meg has begged her father to answer one question: What on earth did he do – or see – that landed them in this god-awful mess? Meg has just about had it with all the Suits’ rules — and her dad’s silence. If he won’t help, it’s time she got some answers for herself.

But Meg isn’t counting on Ethan Landry, an adorable Louisiana farm boy who’s too smart for his own good. He knows Meg is hiding something big. And it just might get both of them killed. As they embark on a perilous journey to free her family once and for all, Meg discovers that there’s only one rule that really matters — survival.

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: •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!

Here's my teaser for the week:

I just don't like it. I don't like most people; it's a person.I don't like it. It's not Annie Maranski's fault that her voice is too high and she walks with a permanent limp to the left for no apparent reason, but  don't like her either. It's like that. I don't blame the baby, but I don't like it.

Page 9
Me, Him, Them and It
By Caela Carter

Now I know this book might be a little controversial to some people, but sometimes it's good to read about things and get different prospectives.  Sure I'm in the beginning of the book and I like it already, just the realness of the whole situation.  Let's see what happens next!!

Review: 7 Clues to Winning You

7 Clues to Winning You
By: Kristin Walker
Release Date: April 26, 2012

Description:
When a humiliating picture of Blythe goes viral, she's instantly the target of ridicule at her new school. To salvage her reputation, Blythe teams up with Luke to win the Senior Scramble scavenger hunt. But Luke is an unlikely ally and potentially can't be trusted.

Perhaps it's his Shakespearean witticisms that reel Blythe in despite her better judgment . . . or maybe she just craves the thrill of the game. But as the hunt progresses, their relationship heats up. Soon their madcap mischief spirals out of control. Blythe is faced with arrest and expulsion, among other catastrophes - until Luke shows her what the Scramble (and love) is really about.

Review:
Sometimes teenagers always seem to think that their world always revolves around them until they realize that sometimes things are about other people and other things, that is just one of the major lessons learned by Blythe in this adorable and wonderfully written book by Kristin Walker.  This book had me hooked right away with situations that are so funny that you couldn't help but wonder what would come up next.

Blythe is on the verge of moving to a new school that her father is the principal of, this is so that he can possibly become the superintendent one day.  He very much feels the need to be able to support his family and not have to deal with his in-laws who do have money.  Blythe of course thinks this is very selfish of him, when in reality she's being selfish herself.  Well she starts a new school where she already seems to have a reputation for something that happened the previous year.  She's ridiculed and goes crying to her principal father that she is being bullied.  I don't think anyone should be bullied, I'm completely against it but sometimes people call something that really isn't there, and that's what she did.

Needless to say some people got in trouble and because she was trying to exact revenge by trying to change things at her new school through her father, it just caused her more problems and now everyone hated her.  She was torn on what to do but eventually figured she would do the Senior Scramble underground with the help of Luke Pavel.  Who she seemingly starts to crush on even if she didn't want to, it just happened. The tasks are somewhat funny and brings her and Luke even closer. 

Throughout the book she learns a couple of valuable lessons and in the process she also learns how to loosen up.  Sometimes being bad is good, if you do it the right way of course.  She befriends some outsiders, but learns that sometimes they are the best people to have around because they like you no matter what you do.  There are also some crazy funny sweet old ladies at a nursing home that Blythe volunteers at all the time, they make me crack up seriously.  They are the funniest characters in the book. 

Overall this was a quick, easy and fun read.  It was sweet in their dorky ways but major plus was there was a lot of Shakespeare going on in the book and I'm a sucker for Shakespeare.  The cover is adorable with the seven arrows and the people looking around, it's great, cute different.  Hope you all get a chance to read this book if for nothing at least for the laugh and the innocence of it.  Oh to be young!!

Blog Tour: Unmaking Hunter Kennedy - Review

Unmaking Hunter Kennedy

By: Anne Eliot
Release date: October 17, 2012

Description:
After a car accident--an event he considers a prank gone bad--pop star, Hunter Kennedy is forced to hide out with his aunt in small-town Colorado. He’s supposed to rest, heal his scars and attend high school in disguise until the press dies down. But he only wants to get back to work.

Worse, the girl who’s been assigned to make him over into a geek is a major geek herself. Vere Roth is a chattering pixie, a blushing tornado and a complete social disaster. He’s never met a girl who’s never-been-kissed, believes in romance and thinks Hunter’s a 'nice' guy.

Funny thing is...Hunter is nice around Vere because she’s his first real friend. He also can’t seem to stop sharing his secrets or keep her out of his heart. Knowing he’d never deserve a girl as sweet as Vere, he resigns himself to the friend zone, and helps his new bestie with her own makeover.

She tortures him daily for ridiculous guy advice on how to snag her life-long crush. A guy Hunter thinks is totally wrong for Vere, and sadly, one who has taken note of Vere’s transformation.

When Vere asks her best friend for some kissing advice, Hunter can’t resist...

And that’s when things get out of control...

High School Romance, first love, sweet romance.
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Review:
This book was really unbelievably sweet and had me blushing with the main characters.  It was adorable in every way a young adult book should be and really I'm sure there are many girls out there who doesn't dream of being friends or hanging out with someone famous that everyone adores.  I know when I was younger I had dreams of being friends with many pop stars.

We meet Hunter Kennedy who is a star of a band who has just gone through a rough spot and is trying to recover in a different way then expected, by blending in to society in the middle of society.  This of course is not something he is looking forward to or at least wasn't until he met Vere.  She is geeky, sweet and just so out there that you can't help but become addicted to her.  If more people gave her a chance they would see what a great person she really was and Hunter gets to experience this firsthand.

While hiding out in Vere's town he starts to dress up as the dorkiest person he could think of all the while blending in and trying to be ignored by everyone so that he can think things through about himself and what it is he wants out of life.  This was a very big change for him but one that he started to enjoy more and more everyday.  Vere of course being her adorable self is loving every moment of this.  Of course she didn't really listen to Hunter's band but started enjoying him as a person.  But in the end she has to wonder who he really was.  All the while she was in love with her brothers best friend, and really who hasn't been there at one point in their lives I know I have.  Well you know the saying be careful what you wish for because when you get it it might not be what you want.  That's completely what happens.

Vere's crush seems to start noticing her but Hunter also starts noticing her, it's a big mess but things work out the way they should be.  overall this book was really great and I couldn't get enough of it.  I would love to have heard some of the songs that Hunger wrote for his band since he seems to have written them all that would have been an extra added bonus because I love song lyrics.  You should really read this book because it's just an overall feel good book and there are some parts in here that will just give you butterflies all over again.  Oh to be young and in love, so fabulous.

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About the Author:

I write MG and YA full time. I'm a member SCBWI, RWA and Pikes Peak Writers. My work has been a finalist in the Heart of Denver Molly Contest and won second at the PPWC conference contest.

Along with a friend and a group of motivated teen girls, I run a website called www.yaromance.com. It, like my YA work, is devoted to all things girl inspired for YA that include things like first kisses, tummy butterflies and great romance.

I've worked as an online marketer and develper for Towrrecords.com, FOX TV, and UNM Engineering. When I'm not writing, I'm a freelance web developer and marketer. I manage four websites and volunteer teaching writing to several groups and schools in Colorado Springs. I love to work with kids and teens who love learning about 'story' and who want to write.

I've got an Italian-Canadian mom and an Irish-American dad. This mean my kids do Irish Dance, and we travel tons, love  food, hugs, nuns and noisy family reunions. When not pining for Tim Horton's to open in Colorado, I ponder Joseph Campbell. His work has inspired me to study story structure and how emotion within a story can move people through time and across cultures. Emotion is the key to everything. I owe JC for keeping me on a journey through the world mythologies, folk tales, and the collective unconsciousness while I search for my own bliss in stories.
I'm a member SCBWI, RWA and Pikes Peak Writers. I'm so proud of these hard working writer's groups. Because writing is often such a lonely job, I encourage all writers to join their local and national groups.

Representation: I am honored to have Jane Dystel from Dystel and Goderich represent the subsidiary rights for my work. Please contact them directly for any inquiries regarding foreign translation and film rights.

Email: contact@anneliot.com
Please find me on Twitter @yaromance
http://www.anneeliot.com
Goodreads
 

Review: The Goddess Inheritance

The Goddess Inheritance
By: Aimee Carter
Release Date: February 26, 2013
Series: The Goddess Test #3

Description:
LOVE OR LIFE .

HENRY OR THEIR CHILD.
THE END OF HER FAMILY OR THE END OF THE WORLD.
KATE MUST CHOOSE.

During nine months of captivity, Kate Winters has survived a jealous goddess, a vengeful Titan and a pregnancy she never asked for. Now the Queen of the Gods wants her unborn child, and Kate can’t stop her—until Cronus offers a deal.

In exchange for her loyalty and devotion, the King of the Titans will spare humanity and let Kate keep her child. Yet even if Kate agrees, he’ll destroy Henry, her mother and the rest of council. And if she refuses, Cronus will tear the world apart until every last god and mortal is dead.

With the fate of everyone she loves resting on her shoulders, Kate must do the impossible: find a way to defeat the most powerful being in existence, even if it costs her everything.
Even if it costs her eternity.

Review:
Aimee Carter has become one of my favorite writers.  The way she strings her stories together throughout the entire series was a joy to read.  I'm very sad that the series is done but I think she really wrapped up the series in the best light.  Through all the highs and lows this series has had me hooked and I couldn't wait to read the next one in the series, of course now that it's completed and even though I still want more I can honestly say that my adventure with this series has been thoroughly entertained and satisfied. If you haven't read the series be warned there may be spoilers, but really if you haven't read the series then what are you waiting for?

We are back with Kate and Calliope who have been together for the last nine months, with Kate pregnant and Calliope going psycho on her, well continuing her psychoness, it's all we can do to root for Kate and her escape from her prison.  Let's not forget Cronus who has it in him that he wants Kate to be his wife.  But of course she wants nothing to do with him, but ever the martyr she will do anything to save her family and not let herself feel anymore heartbreak.  So she will undoubtedly do whatever it takes.  No one seems to know what's going on or at least no one is saying what is going on but then Henry finds out and all hell breaks loose. 

They try time and time again to be together finally the way they are supposed to be but if it's not one thing it's another.  Kate and Henry are destined to be together but first they both have to survive the war of the titans.  Walter/Zeus has his own intentions and is trying to fight this war the best way he knows how, but at what cost will this game of war cost him?  You don't actually get to see how they fight but you can definitely imagine it.  I won't give away that much but let's just say it was heart wrenching to find out what happens and then at the same time there is justice to all who deserve it.

Trying to work together all the gods get together to try and defeat Cronus while Kate is trying her hardest to help, many don't believe in her and don't trust that she can help at all.  But with her quick ideas and her attempts at winning Cronus there is much she learns about herself and about the people around her.  There are times where she doesn't know who to trust and then remembers that the most important thing is for her family to be safe.  There are underlying issues such as who her father is but through it all she just wants to make sure that her son doesn't feel how she felt growing up, but for that to happen they all have to survive the war.

I really don't want to give to much of the story away especially for those who are highly anticipating this book.  But I will say this if you have loved the series as much as I have and you feel for the characters than you will most definitely love this ending and enjoy the way the author has bought this story to an end.  It won't be your typical 100 percent happily ever after, but really that doesn't happen in real life so why should it happen in books.  Just make sure you pick this book up and read it, and when you do make sure to let me know what you thought about it.  When you've got crazy psycho path who is in love with your husband, a god who wants to destroy the world but will stop if you will stand by his side, a best friend who seems to betray you until the very end, a father who doesn't know how to show that he truly does love you, and a baby who is reaching out to you every time you are around,  what are you going to do?  Who will prevail?

The covers in this series has been simple and had a very mythological feel to them, the characters were all great, not typical mythology but still bought it all to the modern day.  I can see this becoming a series on TV, it's been a while since I've seen something about mythology.  Would be something fun to see.  Overall this series, this book, this author have been great to me and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. 

Make sure to check out the other books in The Goddess Test Trilogy:

Book 1: The Goddess Test
Book 1.5: The Goddess Hunt
Book 2: Goddess Interrupted
Book 2.5: The Goddess Legacy
Book 3: The Goddess Inheritance

Disclaimer:
I received this book from NetGalley and HarlequinTEEN, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!

Blog Tour: Enchantment: Review

Enchantment
By: Charlotte Abel
Release Date: June 23, 2011
Series: Channie #1

Description:
Sixteen year old Channie Kerns leads an idyllic life of seclusion and magic deep in the Ozark Mountains ... until her family is forced to flee for their lives.

They leave everything and everyone behind to start over in Louisville, Colorado. Magic is forbidden while they are in hiding, but Channie can't resist the temptation to enchant a group of local boys. When her overbearing parents catch her flirting with these "sex-crazed, non-magical delinquents," they slap a chastity spell on her to protect her virtue.

The spell is triggered by lust, so just navigating the halls at her new school is an ordeal. She can't even touch a boy she's attracted to without blasting him with a jolt of magical energy that feels like a taser.

When Channie falls in love with Josh Abrim, a BMX racer with dangerous secrets of his own, she rebels against her parents and turns to dark and forbidden magic to break the chastity spell ... with disastrous results.

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Review:
I haven't read any books specifically about witches in a while so this was a treat for me.  The characters all had their own personalities and really seemed to learn a lot more than they thought they could throughout the book.  Especially the main character, Channie.

Imagine your parents putting a curse on you and changing your name to Chastity Belks, yes that is exactly what happened to Channie.  Her parents, especially her father, didn't want her to have the same fate as her sister Abundance who was very young and had triplets.  Of course Channie never felt that something like that would happen to her but with a given name like Enchantment the guys would always flock to her, and hence her parents decided to change her name to Chastity.  But instead of making her life better this particular curse made her life more difficult that she could have imagined.  Especially because of Josh.

She randomly met Josh by accident but from the moment they met there was an undeniable attraction between them.  But with her being cursed and him being an empty it was bound to not work out.  But try as they might time and time again they tried to be together.  It was really difficult on them in so many ways but they fought through it because their love was that strong with each other.  It's hard when you find love that strong, you just can't deny it. 

Through all their hardships trying to get rid of Channie's curse their love grew stronger and those around them just could not keep the two apart.  Eventually Channie tried to leave him and go back home to her magical ancestors but even with people searching for her because of her father's debts they made it through it together.  There are revelations throughout the book that lead up to a really amazing ending, one which I was hoping for but still completely surprised me in a happy and hopeful way.

I hope you give this book a read because it was really interesting and is definitely something unlike anything I have ever read in the past.  Really interesting and I can't wait to check out the next book in the series, because there is a storm a comin and Channie and Josh will be in the middle of it.  Great read.  Love the cover, you hardly see books with BMX'rs on it so it was a great change. 
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About the Author:

Charlotte Abel was born and raised in Oklahoma where she met her soulmate, Pete. She chased him to Boulder, Colorado and finally convinced him they were meant to be together forever. They've raised three kids, two ferrets, three dogs and countless hamsters -- and are still happily married.


She's in love with "real" life and paranormal romance. When she's not reading or writing, Charlotte enjoys hiking, bicycling and primitive archery (although she's never shot at anything other than a target!)

Twitter: charlotte_abel

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm "Waiting on":

All I Need
bySusane Colasanti
Release Date: May 21, 2013

Description:
The last night of summer is only the beginning.

Skye wants to meet the boy who will change her life forever. Seth feels their instant connection the second he sees her. When Seth starts talking to Skye at the last beach party of the summer, it’s obvious to both of them that this is something real. But when Seth leaves for college before they exchange contact info, Skye wonders if he felt the same way she did—and if she will ever see him again. Even if they find their way back to each other, can they make a long-distance relationship work despite trust issues, ex drama, and some serious background differences?

Teen favorite Susane Colasanti returns to the alternating-voice style of her beloved debut When It Happens in this Serendipity-inspired story about summer, soul mates, and the moments that change our lives forever.

Teaser Tuesday: Watch Me Disappear

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: •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!

Here's my teaser for the week:

I swear, every time we move to another town and I have to start over at another school, my mother looks at me and thinks, “Maybe this time she’ll make some friends.” She’s a realist.


Watch Me Disappear
Diane Vanaskie Mulligan
(Kindle Locations 27-29)

Book Release Event: Up to Me (The Bad Boys, #2) by M. Leighton

Up To Me
By: M. Leighton
Release Date: Januar 6, 2013
Series: The Bad Boys #2

Description:
Happily ever after doesn’t come easy. But for love, it’s always worth the fight.

Olivia finds bliss unlike any she’s ever known in Cash’s arms. He sets her skin on fire and melts her heart right inside her chest. Unfortunately, their happily ever after is short-lived when a shadow from Cash’s past threatens to turn their world upside down.

Dangerous people from his father’s world have discovered that Cash holds information that could put them away for a very long time. And they’re willing to do anything—and hurt anybody—to get it back. Giving it up means Cash must choose between the life of his father and the life of Olivia.

Having nearly overcome her wariness of bad boys, Olivia’s trust is shaken when this new threat arises. Now she finds that Cash is not only a danger to her heart, but his family has associations that are a danger to her life as well. She soon discovers that there are some situations in life where trust is a girl’s only option. And this is one of them. If she’s to live, she must trust Cash with her life. But to Olivia, that’s much, much easier than letting go and trusting him with her heart.

************************************
Excerpt:

“It’s hard as hell to keep my hands off you. And my eyes. I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”


Olivia’s cheeks turn a pretty pink. “Really?’

“Really what?”

“You really can’t keep your eyes off me?”

“God, to be so smart, you’re thick-headed. Have I not made the way I feel about you abundantly clear?”

I thought I had, but maybe what’s clear to me isn’t so obvious to her. If that’s the case, I’ll have to make a point of being very…forthcoming.

Olivia shrugs and shifts her eyes to the side. I move in closer and bend until she looks at me.

“Hey, I know this is all new and I know how you feel about guys like me.” She starts to interrupt, but I stop her with a finger across her lips. “But I hope you’re starting to see that there’s more to me than you first thought. Than what you first assumed. You have to remember that I’m playing a part, too. One that would be even trickier if I didn’t make each one so

extreme. But you know the real me. You know that in some ways I’m both guys and in some ways I’m neither.”

“How will I ever know the real you then?”

I can see the worry in her eyes; I just don’t know what has happened in the last little while to put it back in there. I thought we’d moved past all this.

I brush her satiny cheek with the backs of my fingers. “You already do.”

************************************
About the Author

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author, M. Leighton, is a native of Ohio. She relocated to the warmer climates of the South, where she can be near the water all summer and miss the snow all winter. Possessed of an overactive imagination from early in her childhood, Michelle finally found an acceptable outlet for her fantastical visions: literary fiction. Having written over a dozen novels, these days Michelle enjoys letting her mind wander to more romantic settings with sexy Southern guys, much like the one she married and the ones you'll find in her latest books. When her thoughts aren't roaming in that direction, she'll be riding horses, swimming in ponds and experiencing life on a ranch, all without leaving the cozy comfort of her office.

About Michelle: I love coffee and chocolate, even more so when they are combined. I'm convinced that one day they could be the basis for world peace. I also love the color red and am seriously considering dying my hair.

Blog | FaceBook | GoodReads | Twitter | EMail | Amazon | B&N

BOOKS BY M. LEIGHTON

Beginnings: An M. Leighton Anthology
Blood Like Poison: For the Love of a Vampire
Blood Like Poison: Destined for a Vampire
Blood Like Poison: To Kill an Angel
Caterpillar
Down to You
Fragile
Gravity
Madly
Madly & Wolfhardt
Madly & the Jackal
The Reaping
The Reckoning
The Wild Ones
Wiccan

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Giveaway!

(1) eBook copy of DOWN TO YOU (The Bad Boys, #1). Book formats available are for Kindle, Nook, or Kobo only. Open International.
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Booking Through Thursday: Resolutions

A weekly meme about (mostly) books and reading. Hosted at Booking Through Thursday.

This weeks question is:

Any reading resolutions for the new year? Reading more? (Reading less?) Reading better books? Bigger books? More series? More relaxing books?
And hey, feel free to talk about any other resolutions you might have, too … or why you choose NOT to have any.

I don't usually do resolutions, but if you think about the Goodreads 2013 challenge is really a resolution for yourself on how many books you plan on reading.  Last year I did 100 and surpassed that.  This year I chose 100 again because I believe I can reach it.  I don't want a goal and then to fail at it, that's probably why I don't do resolutions.  Sure I can just like many people claim to do the typical resolutions but you know what I'm not even going to try because I know I will not even bother doing them.  Why lie to myself so my friends and family can be like I told you so ha, no thanks.

Only thing I want to accomplish this year is going out more but I do that plenty.  Maybe I'll try something new this year.  Who knows only time will tell and I'm all about flying by the seat of my pants and going with the flow of things.  No stress just keep it moving.  Know what I mean?

res·o·lu·tion
/ˌrɛz əˈlu ʃən/ Show Spelled [rez-uh-loo-shuh n] noun

1. a formal expression of opinion or intention made, usually after voting, by a formal organization, a legislature, a club, or other group. Compare concurrent resolution, joint resolution.
2. a resolve or determination: to make a firm resolution to do something.
3. the act of resolving or determining upon an action or course of action, method, procedure, etc.
4. the mental state or quality of being resolved or resolute; firmness of purpose.
5. the act or process of resolving or separating into constituent or elementary parts.

What are your resolutions?