WAITING ON WEDNESDAY ~ THE LONESOME YOUNG

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

This week's WoW selection is...

Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Razorbill

Publication Date: 4/8/14

 

Get swept away in the first book of the sensational romantic drama that is Romeo & Juliet meets Justified.

WHAT HAPPENS when the teenage heirs of two bitterly FEUDING FAMILIES can’t stay away from each other?

The Rhodales and the Whitfields have been sworn enemies for close on a hundred years, with a whole slew of adulterous affairs, financial backstabbing, and blackmailing that’s escalated the rivalry to its current state of tense ceasefire.

IT’S TIME TO LIGHT THE FUSE . . .

And now a meth lab explosion in rural Whitfield County is set to reignite the feud more viciously than ever before. Especially when the toxic fire that results throws together two unlikely spectators—proper good girl Victoria Whitfield, exiled from boarding school after her father’s real estate business melts down in disgrace, and town motorcycle rebel Mickey Rhodale, too late as always to thwart his older brothers’ dangerous drug deals.

Victoria and Mickey are about to find out the most passionate romances are the forbidden ones.

. . . ON A POWDER KEG FULL OF PENT-UP DESIRE, risk-taking daredevilry, and the desperate actions that erupt when a generation of teens inherits nothing but hate.

Why I'm Waiting ~ Romeo and Juliet meets Justified? Heck yeah, I want that! Although...I've never read a "R&J" story that had a happy ending...
Anyhow, I will definitely be reading The Lonesome Young.

What do you think of my pick? Be sure to leave a comment and I will come check out your WoW.

EXCERPT AND GIVEAWAY: THE RULES OF YOU AND ME by SHANA NORRIS

I'm happy today to be able to share an excerpt and giveaway of The Rules of You and Me, by Shana Norris.  This event was organized by AToMR Tours.

 

 

Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: 6/24/13

 

Hannah Cohen has always lived her life by a set of carefully constructed rules to maintain the image of perfection. But now, the rules aren’t helping control the chaos that is quickly taking over.

Opting out of spending the summer in Paris with her mom, Hannah instead heads to the mountains of North Carolina to stay with her aunt. The Blue Ridge Mountains provide a barrier between Hannah and the rest of the world, a safe haven where her secrets can be forgotten.

When Hannah crosses paths with Jude Westmore, a guy who hangs a different shirt from the tree in his front yard every day, she finds herself breaking out of the comfort of her rules and doing things she had never dared before. As the summer passes, Hannah and Jude grow closer and make up their own rules for dealing with life.

But when the secret Hannah has tried to forget is finally revealed, even the new rules can’t save her from possibly losing everything–including Jude.

This young adult romance is a standalone companion novel to The Boyfriend Thief.

 

 

 

EXCERPT

 

  I caught sight of a shirt hanging from the same tree on the corner again and I slowed to a stop on the empty street to study it. It could have been just a shirt that was hung there and forgotten, maybe leftover from a yard sale. But I could have sworn that the shirt I’d seen before was red plaid. Today, a blue button up shirt hung from the tree branch, the sleeves flapping back and forth in the wind.

  My gaze focused just beyond the tree and I saw a familiar dusty gray truck parked in the driveway of the house. The hood was up and as I watched, a figure emerged from the other side of the truck, wiping his hands on a dirty rag.

  Jude Westmore. Shirtless.

  He obviously didn’t spend his spare time laying around on the couch watching TV. Lightly muscled arms led up to a pair of broad shoulders that met a chiseled chest and abs. He had the kind of tan you got from working outside in the sun. The tattoo on his arm was a band, some kind of tribal design that wrapped around a nicely shaped bicep.

  I leaned forward, my hands gripping the steering wheel until my fingers started to tingle.

  BEEP!

  I jumped back, slamming the back of my head against my seat and held my hands up away from the steering wheel. My gaze darted back toward the gray truck, hoping by some miracle he hadn’t heard me accidentally blare my car horn at him.

  But no such luck. Jude straightened, shielding his eyes with one hand as he looked directly at me. Would I look too much like a stalker if I sped away? Did he remember that this was my car?

  I lifted one hand and gave a small wave. I didn’t know what else to do.

 

 

 

Purchase The Rules of You and Me at:

(I receive no compensation for sales)
   

 

GIVEAWAY
Books will be available in mobi and epub formats.
Must be 18 years of age.Open international. (Value $3.99 USD)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

About the author:
I write young adult books from a tiny town in eastern North Carolina, where I live with my husband and our zoo of animals. I am the author of SOMETHING TO BLOG ABOUT and TROY HIGH, both available from Abrams/Amulet Books, and THE BOYFRIEND THIEF and SURFACING, both available in ebook format for all ereaders.  

Connect with Shana:
Website  |  Twitter  |  Facebook

 

 

 

 

 

 

REVIEW: FIRST KISS (HEAVY INFLUENCE TRILOGY #1) by ANN MARIE FROHOFF

Series: Heavy Influence Trilogy #1
Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: 6/11/13
Format: eARC
Pages: 483
Source: Received from author for review

About an up and coming teenage rocker on the verge of stardom, when the girl next door becomes something more; they're forced to face the harsh realities on his road to fame and the expectations of their friends and family. Sacrifices are made as everything changes as they know it.

 










I've literally been waiting on First Kiss for over a year. I read the prequel, Skid Out, in March of 2012, and loved it. I loved Jake, loved Alyssa, and was so, so excited --and anxious-- to see their new and fragile relationship develop.

Take away the fact that Jake is an up-and-coming musician, and First Kiss is essentially the story of a first love. Now that's not to say that Jake's music doesn't play a role in the story and relationship --it does-- but for me, the focus was simply Jake and Alyssa. And that was more than enough considering that she is only fourteen (I think) and Jake is eighteen. And here's what the author did so well: she portrayed all of the emotions, questions, frustrations, elation, confusion, and heartache of a first love. The story took me back to that age and reminded me of those feelings of being so overwhelmed by feelings that are hard to name, much less to control and express. This aspect of First Kiss was so well done.

First Kiss, as you might be able to tell from what I've given thus far, is a character-driven story, and not plot-driven. Other than a few parties and the beginning of the school year, there is not a lot that drives the story forward, other than the impending pull of Jake's career. So given that, the story does tend to focus on every little moment with Jake and Alyssa, and their feelings that come from that. When you take into account that First Kiss is nearly five hundred pages (including Skid Out) the story does become a bit long and drawn out. I did feel that the book could have been shorter, and still have the same impact. But still, I did truly appreciate the honest, not overly romanticized, portrayal of teens and relationships.

First Kiss went to places that I didn't see coming, and covered a much larger span than I anticipated. I felt so bad for Jake and Alyssa. Their lives, and the people around them, were pulling them in different directions, and they have no choice but to follow their paths and hope for the best. The ending really caught me off guard. At first I was more than a little sad and upset at what had gone down. But the more I think about it, I am starting to see that this is what had to happen, and it makes for an excellent set-up to the next book in the series, Broken Notes.



Favorite Quote:

  I was in deep and sinking fast, way more quickly that I imagined possible.
  I didn't give a shit if I drowned.  ~eARC, 39%

 

The Heavy Influence Trilogy

 

(click on cover for GoodReads page)

 

My Review of Skid Out (Heavy Influence Trilogy #0.5)

 

 

 

Purchase Skid Out at:

  

 

About the author:
Ann Marie ("Annie") Frohoff grew up in sunny Southern California. As a teen and young adult she spent her time frequenting and living in nearly every beachside city up and down the coast.
The first installment in her Heavy Influence Trilogy, FIRST KISS, is tentatively set to release June 11, 2013 — The series is a story about young, reckless love between a rising rock star and his younger muse, spanning 10 years of their tumultuous and passionate relationship. Each book in the Trilogy will come with a soundtrack of original music, of which the lyrics will appear in the pages of the books.

Annie is now settled in the South Bay area of Los Angeles with her family.

Connect with Annie at:
Website  |  Twitter  |  Heavy Influence Facebook Page
 

MY THOUGHTS ON: PUSHING THE LIMITS, CROSSING THE LINE, and VEER

Series: Pushing the Limits #1
Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: 8/31/12
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 392
Source: Bought

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.

 

 

Good lord, why hasn't somebody slapped some sense into me by now. How the heck did I go nearly ten months without reading this book? I OWN IT. I pre-ordered Pushing the Limits before it even released... and yet it set on my shelf. Unread. I'm an idiot.

Look, almost everyone I know has read Pushing the Limits by now, and I'm sure that I have nothing new to add to the discussion. So why am I even writing this? Just to state that I loved Pushing the Limits more than words. That Echo Emerson, with her bravery and heart, is a girl that I will always remember. That Noah Hutchins will go down, in my opinion, as one of my all-time favorite book guys. It's not the fact that he was hot or a bad boy that won me. It was his devotion to his brothers, to his friends, and his unconditional, unselfish, and overwhelming love for Echo that won my heart.

Katie McGarry wrote the hell out of this book and is now an auto-buy author.



 

Series: Pushing the Limits #1.5
Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: 4/1/13
Format: Kindle
Pages: 67
Source: Bought

Katie McGarry captivated readers with her “riveting, emotional”* Young Adult debut, Pushing the Limits. In this gripping novella, she tells the story of Lila and Lincoln, who discover that sometimes it’s worth crossing the line for love…

Lila McCormick, Echo's best friend from Pushing the Limits, first met Lincoln Turner when tragedy struck both their lives. But she never expected their surprise encounter would lead to two years of exchanging letters—or that she’d fall for the boy she’s only seen once. Their relationship is a secret, but Lila feels closer to Lincoln than anyone else. Until she finds out that he lied to her about the one thing she depended on him for the most.

Hurting Lila is the last thing Lincoln wanted. For two years, her letters have been the only thing getting him through the day. Admitting his feelings would cross a line he’s never dared breach before. But Lincoln will do whatever it takes to fix his mistakes, earn Lila’s forgiveness—and finally win a chance to be with the girl he loves.

My goodness. I believe that it is simply not possible for Katie McGarry to write a story that I won't love. She packed so much emotion into this novella and I came away from it with such a full heart. I honestly went into Crossing the Line not knowing what to expect, except brilliant writing. Always brilliant writing where McGarry's concerned.

Crossing the Line went beyond my high, but completely open expectations. I love the story of how Lila and Lincoln connected, though it was extremely sad. I loved the chance to know Lila better. I already adored her for her loyalty to Echo. I could identify with Lila, a lot. As someone who has never, ever lived on my own, I could sympathize with her fear of moving away. Lincoln was another great guy from McGarry. I felt so sorry for Lincoln and what he's going through. I loved that he let himself fall for Lila and took a risk to win her trust and her heart.

Crossing the Line was a beautiful novella. I loved everything about it, but I will go ahead and say what everyone else has likely said. It should be longer. Novel length. But I say that only because I can never get enough of this author's words.



Series: Clayton Falls #2
Category/Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Alyssa Rose Ivy
Publication Date:
Format: Kindle
Pages: 286
Source: Bought

Only when you let go can you learn to live.

Between the death of her mother and pushing through law school without her best friend, it's been a tough year for Becca. Needing a break from Boston, she moves to a tiny coastal North Carolina town for a relaxing summer. After bumping heads repeatedly with a local cop, she realizes her summer will be anything but quiet.

Three years after a career ending injury ruins his chance to play Major League Baseball, Gavin has a distrust of northerners and lately girls in general. He wants nothing to do with a girl who is only in town for the summer.

When the two give in to their impossible attraction, they realize that they may just have found the key to freeing themselves from the ghosts of their pasts.

 

 

I'm a fan of Alyssa Rose Ivy and her books. I love her clean, concise writing style, and the characters she creates. I also like how her stories have enough drama to keep me hook, but not so much angst that I feel like I'm going to have a nervous breakdown. I read the first book in the series, Derailed, last winter and was excited to revisit Clayton Falls.

 

I will go ahead and admit, I was worried about Gavin having his own book. I wasn't a fan of his in Derailed. He was too cocky, too pushy. But in Veer, we get to see the other side of Gavin, the man who was dumped for getting injured, the man who's just sort of drifting along.

 

I was very happy that the heroine of Veer was going to be Becca. She didn't play a big part in Derailed, but she was a great friend, and I loved getting to know her better. Strong-willed and with a quick wit and spirited temper, she was an excellent fit for Gavin. The push and pull between the two personalities was fun.

 

As with Derailed, my favorite character was Jake Matthews! This guy is a riot, a button-pusher, and I am itching to get my hands on his upcoming book, Wrecked.

REVIEW: DARE YOU TO (PUSHING THE LIMITS #2) by KATIE McGARRY

Series: Pushing the Limits #2
Category/Genre: Mature Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date:5/28/13
Format: ARC
Pages: 462
Source: Received from publicist for review

Ryan lowers his lips to my ear. "Dance with me, Beth."

"No." I whisper the reply. I hate him and I hate myself for wanting him to touch me again....

"I dare you..."

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

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

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

 

A connection that begins with a careless dare but becomes so much more, Dare You To is a story of taking risks, learning to trust, the transformative power of love, and letting go of the chains that hold you down.

I want so badly to compare Dare You To to Pushing the Limits. To compare Beth to Echo, and Noah to Ryan.  It's inevitable, but truly not necessary, and doesn't give both books their justice. The characters in each story will forever be connected, but just like Beth, I need to let go of that story (for now) and focus on this one.

Beth Risk is a challenging character, one that will probably drive some readers crazy with her harsh words, attitude, extreme stubbornness and inability to see that she must leave her old life if she ever wants to survive. She's frustrating, yes. But I think that if Beth had simply gone along with the people who wanted her to change her life and didn't fight until it nearly broke her, that would not have given her character true authenticity. It wouldn't have given justice to how truly messed up Beth's life was.

I'll admit, I really wanted Beth with Isaiah, I thought they were perfect for each other because they were so alike. But, it's that very reason that Beth and Isaiah need to let go of one another. To break away, and make better lives. To each find someone to see them for the person they can and should be, instead of the person the are right now. This realization was heartbreaking for Beth, and impossible to grasp for Isaiah. I would say for me, that seeing Beth slowly let go of Noah and Isaiah was the hardest part of Dare You To. I trust that McGarry will take good care of Isaiah in Crash Into You.

Ryan Stone is the boy who met Beth on a dare. A boy who leads a charmed life, but on the inside, he has some serious struggles of his own. His seemingly perfect family has imploded. His father's control, his mother's need for a perfect façade, and a brother's secret has driven the Stones apart. Ryan is destined to be a professional baseball player, but also has the heart of a writer. He lives his life to please others until he meets Beth Risk. And as much as Ryan challenges her, she gives it right back, pushing him to live the life he wants, with the people he wants in it. I wondered if I could love Ryan as much as Noah Hutchins because Noah goes through so many horrible things in his life, and is such a remarkable character (so much for not comparing). But the thing is, just because one person's issues in life aren't as "terrible" as another's, doesn't make them any less valid to that person.

What truly made me love Ryan was his love for Beth. He could have only taken Beth at her harsh exterior, but pushed her to open up, to trust, love, and see that she could have a better life. She does the same for him in many respects. A lot of times, books and characters are unfairly (in my opinion) criticized for the "love saves" story. That everyone, girls in particular, should be able to save themselves and "why does a guy always have to swoop in and save the day?". And that could be true for a character who is raised with a strong sense of self and a healthy upbringing. But not all characters -or people- have that advantage. The love and faith of another person may not necessarily save you, but can cause you to begin to see yourself as they do, as someone worthy of love and happiness. And that's why I love stories like Dare You To: they show the beautifully transformative power of love. *cue Celine Dion*

Dare You To is an amazing story. I was completely taken over by the story and characters, barely eating and forgoing sleep until the very last page. I was blown away by the characters, their stories and emotions. Katie McGarry is an incredibly talented and thoughtful author, and I will eagerly read anything she writes. I cannot recommend the Pushing the Limits Series highly enough.

Favorite Quotes:


   "Trust me."
  "I can't," I whisper. I trusted Scott, my mother, and my father. I trusted Luke, my aunt, and Isaiah. All people who left me. All people who faded into darkness. My heart has been ripped multiple times and each time I repaired it on my own. I know my limits and if someone rips me apart again, I'll never find the strength to pick up the pieces.
  An intensity warms his brown eyes and he gently hugs my body to his. "You can."
  I suck in a breath. Ryan's doing it. He's giving me the same look Chris gives Lacy. The same look Noah gives Echo. Maybe I can. My heart thunders as I reach up and grab the hair curling near the base of Ryan's neck. "Don't drop me."  ~ARC, pg. 339


  "It's our rain, Beth."
  Her head barely shakes to show her confusion while I rub the back of my neck and search for my courage. "I told you I loved you in this rain and when you doubt my words, I want you to look at this bottle."  ~ARC, pg. 348


    There are times when you stand on the cusp of moments so huge, you know you'll remember them forever. This is that moment for me and for Ryan. I'm not seducing him. He's not seducing me. Instead, we're choosing to be together.  ~ARC, pg. 376

 

Pushing the Limits Series

 

(click on cover for GoodReads page)

 

Purchase Dare You To at:

 

 

 

 

About the author:

KATIE MCGARRY was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, and reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Katie would love to hear from her readers. Contact her via her website, follow her on Twitter , or become a fan on Facebook and Goodreads.

REVIEW: CLICK TO SUBSCRIBE by L.M. AUGUSTINE

Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: 5/9/13
Format: eARC
Pages: 252
Source: Received from author for review

1,135,789. That’s how many subscribers sixteen-year-old West Ryder has on his web vlog series. But he only has eyes for one of them.

As one of the internet’s most prestigious video bloggers, West talks about high school relationships under the name “Sam Green.” As far as he knows, no one from school, not even his best friend, Cat, has seen his videos. But the highlight of the whole thing is Harper Knight, who comments every day at exactly 2:02 in the afternoon. He doesn’t know anything about her aside from the occasional deep philosophical messaging on why pizza tastes so delicious, but as stupid as it sounds, he might be falling for her. So when they finally agree to meet in real life, West’s hope for romance seems more and more in reach. But that all changes as soon as he arrives at their meeting spot and sees Cat walking toward him, wearing the same “I <3 Sam Green” T-shirt Harper promised she'd have on.

To his alarm, West realizes he is falling in love with the best friend who has always been a sister to him.

 

 

 

What happens when your best friend falls in love with you?

 

 

Click to Subscribe was a really sweet story, but it also had a lot more depth than I anticipated. The synopsis really only clues you in to half the story. Yes, it is about a boy who falls for a regular commenter on his vlog. And yes, he finds out that this girl is actually his best friend, Cat. But, this happens in the first portion of the story and the real hook is finding out what happens next.

 

Click to Subscribe is the cute and sweet story promised in the synopsis and on the cover. West and Cat were funny and so adorable. They've been best friends for their entire lives, and have the rapport to show for it. They have a lifetime of  memories and love to show for it. There is also a lot of pain in West's life. His mom died a year ago in a drunk driving accident. His dad was the driver, and the relationship between West and his dad is understandably horrible. [Sidenote: I have to wonder, how is his dad not in jail? Or even still have custody of West?] So not only has West lost his mom, but essentially his father as well. Cat is the one person he loves that is still in his life. She is a fabulous person and friend.

 

But what happens when your best friend falls in love with you? It seems like it would be great, yeah? I mean, I can speak for myself and say that falling and love and marrying my best friend is the best thing that happened to me. But, being that Cat is all that West has left, he has to wonder and worry what will happen if things don't work out? It is a very valid and reasonable worry and the author did an excellent job of conveying all of West's concerns over the matter. I could have gotten irritated with how hesitant and slow West is to make a decision, but I felt that it was authentic (or so I would think) to a teenage boy's mind. Especially one who's lost as much as West.

 

Click to Subscribe was a very fast, fun (yes, I said it again) and thoughtful story. If you're looking for a great young adult story with a male point-of-view, I recommend it.

 

 

Favorite Quote:

  "We can be friends for now." But West Ryder, if you think this means I won't fight for you with every last breath I have, you're in for a hell of a surprise."  ~ 56%


  If we kiss -- and I'm not saying we will -- I want it to be real. Honest. I want us to both be ready, and I want it to be the best damn kiss this world has ever seen.  ~79%

 

Purchase Click to Subscribe at:
 

    

 

About the author:
L.M. Augustine is a YA romance author who is obsessed with writing about dorky teenagers, love, and happy endings. He currently lives in New England, where he spends far too much time reading books and screaming at his computer, and he believes that the solution to the world’s problems can be found in chocolate cake. Click To Subscribe is his first novel, but it won’t be his last.

Connect with L.M. at:
Website  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  |  GoodReads

EXCERPT AND GIVEAWAY: WIDE AWAKE by SHELLY CRANE

I'm happy to be able to share an excerpt and giveaway of

Wide Awake, by

Shelly Crane. This event was organized by AToMR Tours.

 

 

Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: 3/22/13

 

A girl.
A coma.
A life she can't remember.

When Emma Walker wakes up in the hospital with no knowledge of how she got there, she learns that she's been in a coma for six months. Strangers show up and claim to be her parents, but she can't remember them. She can't remember anyone. Not her friends, not even her boyfriend. Even though she can't remember, everyone wants her to just pick up where she left off, but what she learns about the 'old her' makes her start to wish she'd never woken up. Her boyfriend breaks up with the new girl he's dating to be with her, her parents want her to start planning for college, her friends want their leader back, and her physical therapist with the hazel eyes keeps his distance to save his position at the hospital.

Will she ever feel like she recognizes the girl in the mirror?

 

EXCERPT

 

  He smiled that Mason smile that set me on fire all over. Then he put one hand on the other side on the hospital bed and the other lifted toward my face. I waited, bated breath, gulping, sweaty palms, fluttering eyes, the works. His face got so close before he stopped. I thought he had decided against whatever he was doing he waited so long. I began to pull back in disappointment, but he reached behind my neck gently and pulled me to him. The barest of touches was the best way to describe our first kiss. It wasn't really a kiss at all. His bottom lip barely brushed my top one. When he leaned back and opened his eyes, he must've seen the confusion and frustration in my face.

  He chuckled. "I just had to taste that coconut…" he licked his lips, "but I don't want to kiss you when you've been angry at me and I messed up our date." He said 'date'. Like…a date. "I want to kiss you when if we go another second without it, one of us will combust."

  My breaths were raging. I tried to calm myself. "I…" I failed.

   "I want to give you back your first kiss, the one that jerk stole from you. And I want it to be something that even a coma can't make you forget."

 

 

GIVEAWAY

 

One winner will receive an ecopy of Wide Awake, via Smashwords coupon.

Open Intl.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Purchase Wide Awake at:

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Smashwords

 

 

About the author:

Shelly is a New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author from a small town in Georgia and loves everything about the south. She is wife to a fantastical husband and stay at home mom to two boisterous and mischievous boys who keep her on her toes. They currently reside in everywhere USA as they happily travel all over with her husband's job. She loves to spend time with her family, binge on candy corn, go out to eat at new restaurants, buy paperbacks at little bookstores, site see in the new areas they travel to, listen to music everywhere and also LOVES to read.

Her own books happen by accident and she revels in the writing and imagination process. She doesn't go anywhere without her notepad for fear of an idea creeping up and not being able to write it down immediately, even in the middle of the night, where her best ideas are born.

 

Connect with Shelly at:

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  GoodReads  |  Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

 

 

 

 

 

BLOG TOUR: IF HE HAD BEEN WITH ME by LAURA NOWLIN ~ REVIEW and GUEST POST

Series: Stand alone

Genre: Contemporary Young Adult

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publication Date: 4/1/13
Format: eARC
Pages: 336
Source: Received from publisher for review

 

If he had been with me, he wouldn't have died.

Throughout their whole childhood, Finn and Autumn were inseparable—they finished each other's sentences, they knew just what to say when the other person was hurting. But one incident in middle school puts them in separate social worlds come high school, and Autumn has been happily dating James for the last 2 years. But she's always wondered what if...

The night she's about to get the answer is also one of terrible tragedy

 

 

 

I finished If He Had Been With Me a few hours ago, and I still sit here not quite knowing what to say. This book, it did quite a number on my emotions. That's a good thing. I think I'm still in shock over the conclusion of the story.

 

 I don't know why I found the ending so shocking, I was clearly warned in the opening that If He Had Been With Me would not have a happy ending. Maybe it's because I am a hopeless optimist who always believes that every story has a happy ending. I would also say my heart feels crushed because I went into the story thinking it would be Finn and Autumn, learning that it's more about Autumn and her life without Finn, but always longing for him,  waiting for both of these two to WAKE UP and see what is right there in front of them, a short time of elation, then

 

hoping...

 

hoping...

 

hoping...

 

that Autumn and Finn's story would not take the tragic turn promised at the beginning of the story.

 

When I finished If He Had Been With Me, I felt sick, heartsick and physically. I wanted to be angry, at the characters and at the author. I really, really did.  As a reader, I was so invested in this story, and that really surprised me because I spent the first half frustrated of Autumn's trivial day-to-day account of her own life. But once I was able to really get into the story and grasp what it was truly about, I was so there. I could hardly put it down. But I can't be angry, though I am so heartbroken that I am thisclose to just laying my head down and crying all over again. I can only feel, grateful, I guess? Because If He Had Been With Me made me feel deeply. And that is my greatest test as a reader.

 

 

 Favorite Quote:

 

  I've loved him my whole life, and somewhere along the way, that love didn't change, but grew. It grew to fill the parts of me that I did not have when I was a child. It grew with every new longing in my body and desire in my heart until there was not a piece of me that did not love him. And when I look at him, there is no other feeling in me.  ~eARC, 49% 

 

 

  My eyes are wet again, and I feel one tear trail down the corner of my eye, and then another and another, and I realize that there may never be another moment more perfect than this for the rest of my life.  ~eARC, 94%

 

 

GUEST POST

Ten Things I Wish I Could Change about my High School Years



1. I wish smart phones had existed, and that I'd had one.
This seems frivolous, I know, but when I was in high school only the rich kids had cell phones at all, and wi-fi was a rare and wondrous thing. I can only imagine how cool it must be to get into hilarious hijinks with your friends, and be able to post pics of your shenanigans in real time. If we did something cool, we had to tell people about it later, and we probably didn't have photographic proof, because pictures were these paper things you had to pay money to have made.


2. I wish I had broken up with my boyfriend.
Now, my high school sweetheart was not a bad guy by any means, but looking back I see how I only dated him for my entire high school career because I liked the idea of only having one boyfriend ever. If I had really been following my heart, I would have admitted to myself that he wasn't the one and only guy for me, and I could have possibly had a wider range of romantic experience.


3. I wish I had broken more rules.
I was a good kid. A really, really good kid. Sometimes as an adult I wish I had some of the when-I-was-a-crazy-teen stories that other people have.


4. I wish I had learned to drive.
In If He had Been with Me, Autumn manages to graduate high school without learning to drive. I managed to graduate from college and get married without a driver's license. I let a small anxiety grow into a massive mental block, and I wonder what the ego-boost of conquering my fear would have done for teenage me.


5. I wish I had admitted to others that I needed help.
As an adult I have been diagnosed with clinical depression, but as a teenager I hid my depressive episodes from my loved ones. I can only imagine how different those years would have been if I would have admitted my to struggle and gotten the help I needed.


6. I wish I had worked harder in Spanish class, and gone to Spain on the class trip.
I ended up minoring in Spanish, but I never did get the experience of full immersion, and now my skills are so rusty that I'll probably never be fluent.


7. I wish our exchange student had lived with us all four years
Swantje lived with my family for ten months. She challenged and inspired me, and ultimately changed me forever. To this day I keep a picture of her by my writing desk.

8. I wish I had cared less about what other people thought.
I think everyone feels this way about their high school years. At the time, I claimed that I didn’t care what others thought, but when I compare that to how much I really don’t care now...


9. I wish I’d been less critical of my body
When I look at pictures of my teenage self, I just want to grab that girl by the shoulders and scream, “Your stomach IS flat! It really is! And you are not appreciating how high your breast are! Your stomach is flat and your breasts are perky! Go put on a string bikini and feel fabulous! Right Now!”

10. I wish I had written more.
To be fair, I think this is something I will always say about any time in my life. I guess it's nice to know that some things will never change.

 

 

Preorder If He Had Been With Me at:

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Book Depository

 

 

About the author

Laura Nowlin holds a B.A. in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing from Missouri State University. Her short stories have appeared in The Moon City Review and STEM. In addition to being ambitious writer Laura is also an avid reader who believes that books allow her to live many lives in one lifetime. When she isn’t at home agonizing over her own novels Laura works at the public library where the patrons give her plenty of inspiration for her writing. She lives in St. Louis with her musician husband, neurotic dog, and psychotic cat.

 

Connect with Laura at:

Website  |  Twitter

 

COVER REVEAL: CASTLES IN THE SAND BY E.M. TIPPETTS

Welcome to the cover reveal for Castles on the Sand, by E.M. Tippetts. The reveal was organized by AToMR Tours.

 

 

Category/Genre: Contemporary Romance
Released: August 2012
Cover Designer: Okay Creations


If there’s one thing Madison Lukas understands, it’s pain. The pain she feels when her mother ignores her completely. The pain her best friend endures as her parents starve her as punishment. The pain of a dangerous boy whose mother has to be carried away by law enforcement on a regular basis.

She gets it. She feels the pain of others as if it were her own.

But when a mysterious man claiming to be her long lost brother appears with promises of relieving her suffering, trusting him could reveal more truths than Madison is ready for. Because the truth can hurt, too.

--

"A fast-paced blend of high-stakes drama and average teenage concerns (sex, appearance, friends), capped with a welcome message of hope." - Kirkus Review of Castles on the Sand

 

 

 

Purchase Castles on the Sand at:

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Kobo 

 

 

 

About the author:
Emily Mah Tippetts writes romance under the name E.M. Tippetts and science fiction and fantasy under the name Emily Mah. Originally from New Mexico, she now lives in London with her family. Before she was a published author, she was an attorney who specialized in real estate, contracts, and estate planning, especially literary estate planning.

Connect with the author at:
Website  |  Twitter   |  Facebook