Rita's World

Review: Pandemonium

2013-04-01T04:00:00.000-07:00

PANDEMONIUM
by Lauren Oliver

GOODREADS BLURB
"So what was your name before?" I say, and she freezes, her back to me. "Before you came to the Wilds, I mean."

For a moment, she stands there.

Then she turns around.

"You might as well get used to it now," she says with quiet intensity.

"Everything you were, the life you had, the people you knew... dust."

She shakes her head and says, a little more firmly, "There is no before. There is only now, and what comes next."

After falling in love, Lena and Alex flee their oppressive society where love is outlawed and everyone must receive the "cure" -- an operation that makes them immune to the delirium of love -- but Lena alone manages to find her way to a community of resistance fighters. Although she is bereft without the boy she loves, her struggles seem to be leading her toward a new love.

MY THOUGHTS
Well written and intense, but oh so painful! Alex has to still be alive, and instead we’re watching Lena fall in love with someone else. No, no, no!

Months together with Alex, building a relationship, and in just a couple days, Julian takes his place. Well, it’s been 6 months since Alex got taken by the police. So in Lena’s defense, she didn’t just jump into someone else’s arms as soon as she escaped Portland, Maine.

She grieved for him. She kept living for him. And she chose to love again because he taught her about living to the fullest, loving with all your heart.

As much as I hated reading Pandemonium and watching this disaster ensue, I admired the author’s ability to tie me into knots and yearn for good things for her characters. I’m soooo hoping for a happy ending with the third and last installment of this series.

Review: Delirium

2013-03-25T04:00:00.000-07:00

DELIRIUM
by Lauren Oliver

GOODREADS BLURB
They say that the cure for Love will make me happy and safe forever.

And I've always believed them.

Until now.

Now everything has changed.

Now, I'd rather be infected with love for the tiniest sliver of a second than live a hundred years smothered by a lie.

Lena looks forward to receiving the government-mandated cure that prevents the delirium of love and leads to a safe, predictable, and happy life, until ninety-five days before her eighteenth birthday and her treatment, when she falls in love.
MY THOUGHTS
Savory, beautiful, delicious.

One of the best dystopian books I’ve read. Dare I say better than Hunger Games? Yes, probably. Though unlike Hunger Games, I wouldn’t recommend this one to my husband. Too much teenage romance.

Scientists discovered that this thing we call LOVE is a disease which eats us apart, and many of the social problems we have (bipolar disorder, OCD, depression, etc) are all symptoms of this disease. But thank goodness, they found a cure! A little brain surgery and we will all be free of this horrendous disease. Mandated by the United States government.

But the problem: this procedure is not safe to perform on anyone under the age of 18.

Strict rules keep girls and boys separated, until they are paired and cured. These rules control what they read, the music they listen to, their curfews. And there are enforcers roaming the streets as they watch for any undesirable activities.

Cities are fenced off, and the Invalids who live out in the Wilds were purged (bombed) many years ago. Thank goodness! We’re safe from them.

Lena is 17 and she can’t wait to finally have her procedure. She wants to be cured of this dirty disease. She wants to be like everybody else.

Until she meets Alex.

What I loved about this book:

#1. Of all the dystopians, this book reminded the most of 1984 by George Orwell: love being an evil thing

#2. Great care was taken in tying the two love birds together

#3. The language was beautiful and poetic (sometimes too much so, but I still enjoyed it)

Not much traumatic or intense happens throughout the story, but you can feel it coming, and the ending doesn’t disappoint on the intensity level.

Review: Shatter Me

2013-03-18T16:47:00.000-07:00

SHATTER ME
by Tahereh Mafi

GOODREADS BLURB
Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war– and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

OPENING LINES
I’ve been locked up for 264 days.

I have nothing but a small notebook and a broken pen and the numbers in my head to keep me company. 1 window. 4 walls. 144 square feet of space. 26 letters in an alphabet I haven’t spoken in 264 days of isolation.

6,336 hours since I’ve touched another human being.

“You’re getting a ~~cellmate~~ roommate,” they said to me.

“~~We hope you rot to death in this place~~For good behavior,” they said to me.

MY THOUGHTS

A dystopian X-men kind of story! Loved it.

And the main character has Rogue’s power—she leeches life energy off of anybody she touches. When she accidentally kills a small boy who she was trying to soothe because he was crying, Juliette is thrown into an asylum and put in solitary confinement.

I absolutely loved the language of the opening chapters. Poetic insanity. What would our minds think about if we had 264 days of solitary confinement?

New cellmate is a boy from her past, but he’s there under orders of the military regime to spy on her. She’s a valuable tool, and the local general wants to user her.

This story did not go where I expected, though I’m not upset about it. I thought this would be your usual dystopian, and instead it turned out to be more of a superhero story. A unique twist on the whole dystopian idea.

Not my favorite book, but I’m looking forward to reading more in this series. I think it is only going to get better.

Lucky Leprechaun Giveaway Hop

2013-03-14T10:06:00.000-07:00

One WINNER will receive an eBook copy of Playing Hooky!

Valentine’s Day.

And my 21st birthday.

Whoop-de-doo.

Just another college day full of classes and more homework than is humanly possible.

…until Jason, my best-friend-since-kindergarten, shows up to take me out for the day.

Like old times: the two of us on a wacky adventure, playing hooky from real life. With his lopsided grin and tickets to a circus full of misfits and monsters, he introduces me to a whole new world—one full of magic and mystery—and turns my reality upside down.

Except nothing goes as planned, and we end up running through the city to find a missing siren before someone brews a love potion with her blood.

Sirens and love potions, witches and elves, and Valentine kisses. Nothing will be the same for me again.

One WINNER will receive an eBook copy of Daughter of the Goddess!

The Heart.

The God of Love seeks a bride who is pure in heart and full of life—full of soul. Instead of a woman, he finds a child with laughter in her heart. Waiting for her to grow up, he befriends her, pretending to be nothing more than a blue-eyed boy with wild, tangled hair.

The Soul.
Left on the temple doorstep, a young girl turns the lives of the priestesses upside down . . . until one summer day before her eighteenth birthday, a traveling oracle tells her she is to marry a stranger in a foreign land.

The Nightmare.
An ancient demon—half-man, half-snake—wants to destroy anything the gods love. When she was a child, he haunted her dreams, but now he stalks her across the countryside. If he catches her, he’ll devour her.

One WINNER will receive an eBook copy of Transcendent: Tales of the Paranormal!!!

Discover the secrets of a siren, fly with a hawk girl over the mountains of Montana, and flee supernatural party-crashers as the décor comes to life in this magical journey through paranormal stories.

Along the way, watch for ghosts in a haunted house, or ride through the moonlight with a stranger. Save a comatose boy who has lost his soul, and don’t forget to bring your garlic and wolfsbane—you never know when the shadows will snag you.

Transcendent includes eight stories of magic, love, death, and choice by some of the newest names in young adult fiction.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wishful Wednesday 3.13.13

2013-03-13T04:00:00.000-07:00

This is where I share books I really, REALLY want to read...

...if only I had enough time!!!

HIDDEN WINGS

by Cameo Renae

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

GOODREADS BLURB
Seventeen is a life changing age for Emma Wise.

As her family's sole survivor in a car crash, she is left with a broken arm and a few scrapes and bruises. But these are only outward marks; inside, her heart is broken and the pieces scattered.

Whisked away to Alaska, to an aunt she’s never met, Emma starts over. Secrets unveil themselves and now…she doesn't even know who or what she is.

A centuries old prophecy places Emma in the heart of danger. Creatures of horrifying and evil proportions are after her, and it will take Emma, her aunt, and six, gorgeously captivating Guardians to keep her safe. But, if she can survive until her eighteenth birthday... things will change.

Review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer

2013-03-12T04:00:00.000-07:00

The Evolution of Mara Dyer
by Michelle Hodkin

Blurb from Goodreads:
Mara Dyer once believed she could run from her past.

She can’t.

She used to think her problems were all in her head.

They aren’t.

She couldn’t imagine that after everything she’s been through, the boy she loves would still be keeping secrets.

She’s wrong.

In this gripping sequel to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, the truth evolves and choices prove deadly. What will become of Mara Dyer next?

Favorite Quote (one of many):

Reflexively, I checked my reflection in the side mirror.

My hair was plastered to my face, and I was pale. But I looked okay. Maybe a little thin. A little tired. But normal.

Then my reflection winked. Even though I hadn’t.

My Thoughts:

I’m a sucker for insane characters!

Fast paced! This story is a roller coaster ride of an amazing story. You don’t know how much is in her head and how much is real—the dead cat in her backyard, the writing in blood on her mirror, and her grandmother’s doll staring at her. The strange dreams and the sightings of her dead ex-boyfriend.

I loved how Mara changed through this story. She finds some of the answers she desperately needs (yay!), and most importantly, I love how she came to accept herself and her strange powers.

Noah is awesome, the way he supports her and fights for her and helps her every step of the way. One of the best supporting male roles in YA books today. Up there with Alex from Delirium and Peeta from Hunger Games.

Highly, highly recommend this series!

Book Spotlight: TALENTED by Sophie Davis

2013-03-10T18:21:00.000-07:00

Isn't this cover GORGEOUS? Love it!

Talented

by Sophie Davis

Purchase Now on Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Smashwords | Kobo

Add to your Goodreads to-read list

When Talia Lyons was just a child, her parents were murdered before her eyes. Offered a choice between accepting their fate and exacting revenge, Talia trains to become one of the country’s deadliest assassins in order to kill the man responsible for their deaths: Ian Crane. Luckily, Talia was born with a gift- the ability to read and influence the minds of others. At sixteen, Talia is poised to graduate from the McDonough School for the Talented, where she learned to control her abilities. Now there is only one obstacle standing between her and the retribution she craves... Talia herself.

Her greatest asset may also be her undoing; while a formidable weapon in the field, Talia’s talents prevent her from both shutting off the mental connection she shares with her questionable boyfriend and blocking out the thoughts of a beguiling fellow recruit. But Talia can’t afford to have the feelings and distractions of a normal teenage girl, when her life is far from normal.

She must regain the single-minded determination that has brought her this far, or it may cost Talia her life when she finally faces Crane. And even after being molded into a weapon of war, she’ll still have to find the strength it takes to pull the trigger.

If James Bond and Sookie Stackhouse had a love child with a yearning for vengeance, her story would be TALENTED: an adventure about powerful teenagers who aren’t afraid to embrace their fears and fight for what they believe in.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

This sounds like a delicious book. And for a limited time it is FREE. So go check it out!

Happy 7th Birthday!

2013-03-09T18:20:00.000-08:00

My youngest is so not a baby anymore, but at least, Mikey is still her favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

When she was about 3 years old, Mikey was her invisible friend. She had tea parties with him (and scolded me when I accidentally sat on him) and held his hand when walking in the park.

This is the little girl who cried when her sister broke her invisible force field and when her sister stole all her invisible brothers and sisters.

She has always been the laughter in our house and keeps us all happily insane.

I can't believe she's 7 years old already!

Review: Stealing Parker

2013-03-06T04:00:00.000-08:00

Stealing Parker
by Miranda Kenneally

I confess I rolled my eyes when I started this book. I thought it would be the exact same plot as Catching Jordan, only with baseball instead of football. In fact, I even knew who the love interest would be.

Boy, was I wrong. And the author wowed me again with a great plot and story arc.

Parker is the opposite of Jordan. Both are strong characters, and both have cut off a side of themselves to hide who they really are. But where Jordan cut off her feminine side, Parker hid the tomboy side after her mom came out of the closet, divorced her dad, and then moved half-way across the state to another city. It didn’t help that Parker’s once-upon-a-time best friend spread rumors about Parker also being gay.

So Parker quit baseball, lost thirty pounds of muscle by refusing to eat, and kissed every boy she could get her hands on. She didn’t ever sleep with anyone, but she let boys use her body with the sole purpose of proving she wasn’t a lesbian.

This need to prove herself to the world led her to an unsavory relationship with an older man—a teacher and coach in the high school. This part of the book was hard to read. I could see how this road was leading to self-destruction, and it was painful to watch. But the author handled it BRILLIANTLY.

I cried a lot in this book, first at Parker’s pain at her mom’s supposed betrayal (leaving the family and moving away) and then at the trouble Parker got herself into that made her call her mom and ask for a shoulder to cry on.

Parker’s road to healing was very different from Jordan’s. Where Jordan needed to find her feminine side and gain some female companionship, Parker needed to simply find herself and stop being something she wasn’t. One of my favorite parts was at the end, when she’s reading a book and a girl asks to sit and have lunch with her. Parker says that she’d rather be by herself for a while.

Sometimes that’s a good thing—to recognize the need to be alone and the willingness to stand up for your boundaries.

Although Parker’s situation was different from Jordan’s, the character development and the reconciliation theme were similar, and it is my hope that the next will have similar themes with new characters and new situations.

In the end, I have to say: Amazing book!

Read for the 2013 Feminist Reads Challenge

No Strings Attached Giveaway Hop

2013-03-04T04:00:00.000-08:00

One WINNER will receive an eBook copy of Playing Hooky!

Valentine’s Day.

And my 21st birthday.

Whoop-de-doo.

Just another college day full of classes and more homework than is humanly possible.

…until Jason, my best-friend-since-kindergarten, shows up to take me out for the day.

Like old times: the two of us on a wacky adventure, playing hooky from real life. With his lopsided grin and tickets to a circus full of misfits and monsters, he introduces me to a whole new world—one full of magic and mystery—and turns my reality upside down.

Except nothing goes as planned, and we end up running through the city to find a missing siren before someone brews a love potion with her blood.

Sirens and love potions, witches and elves, and Valentine kisses. Nothing will be the same for me again.

One WINNER will receive an eBook copy of Daughter of the Goddess!

One WINNER will receive an eBook copy of Transcendent: Tales of the Paranormal!!!

Along the way, watch for ghosts in a haunted house, or ride through the moonlight with a stranger. Save a comatose boy who has lost his soul, and don’t forget to bring your garlic and wolfsbane—you never know when the shadows will snag you.

Transcendent includes eight stories of magic, love, death, and choice by some of the newest names in young adult fiction.

And all I need from you is your preferred EBOOK FORMAT!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Catching Jordan

2013-02-12T04:00:00.000-08:00

BLURB:

(from goodreads)

ONE OF THE BOYS

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though-she leads them as the captain and quarterback of her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university.

But everything she's ever worked for is threatened when Ty Green moves to her school. Not only is he an amazing QB, but he's also amazingly hot. And for the first time, Jordan's feeling vulnerable. Can she keep her head in the game while her heart's on the line?

REVIEW:

It’s been weeks since I first read this book, and I still catch myself thinking back to the characters. Well, to Jordan in particular. Part of it is because I joined the 2013 Feminist Reads Challenge. Jordan certainly falls in the category of a strong female lead.

She was a high school quarterback and the best in her state, and her dream was to play college football. Except nobody wanted a female player, let alone a quarter back. One school offered her a full scholarship, but they never intended for her to play. They planned to use her for recruiting and advertising like a football pinup girl.

What absolutely amazed me about the writing on this was how the author gave Jordan weaknesses within her strengths. Okay, me saying that doesn’t make any sense, but if you read the book, you’ll probably know what I mean…

#1. Jordan always had to be the best. So afraid of being undervalued or made fun of because she was a girl, she turned everything into a competition. Sometimes when you are strong, you don’t really have to be the best.

Henry picks up an even bigger rock and throws it into the river. It makes a much larger splash than mine. Damn it.

I search for a bigger rock, find one and pick it up, launching it into the river. My splash totally kicks Henry’s splash’s ass.

#2. Jordan hid any of her softer side from others, like tears or her interest in creative writing and poetry.

After throwing the ball up and catching it for the thousandth time, I wedge the flashlight under my chin and begin to write:

The whole school knows about Saturday night
Saturday, disappearing with Ty was the right decision
Right as eating peanuts at a baseball game
Right as the sound of coffee grinding on a Saturday morning
Today? Confused as hell

I can’t believe how much I’m beginning to love writing. Not just getting thoughts out of my head, but the challenge of finding creative words and rhythms and fun descriptions.

Right as the smell of smoke following fireworks

Still, writing’s a weak thing to be doing. At least compared to playing quarterback. Or eating those scalding 911 wings that made me and Ty cry at the Titans game.

The door to the shed suddenly slams open and Henry crawls in next to me, watching as I hide my journal behind a watering can.

#3. Jordan did her best to hide her feminine side too. No makeup, didn’t even comb her hair some times, never wore dresses. As if she was ashamed of being a girl.

Instead of my usual ratty “Titans” and “Blue Buckle Moon Pie Ten-Mile Race” T-shirts, I pick out a plain black fitted tee. I know, I know—I’m wild. But seriously? For me, this fitted tee is totally dressing up, and it shows off my boobs. I don’t think too many people even realize I have boobs.

And the story arc brought her in touch with her deeper side. I loved, LOVED how Jordan changes throughout the course of the story. She finds her own place of strength as she brings the feminine side and the tomboy side together. She finds peace and contentment with herself.

But the best part is the relationship with her father. I’m a sucker for reconciliation stories! And the author is a MASTER at reconciliation. Jordan’s dad is a professional football player, and he supports Jordan’s older brother on his college football career but then won’t even go to Jordan’s high school games.

All because he watched his friend get killed in a game and was concerned about Jordan’s ability to handle the bigger guys. Jordan is tall for a girl, about 6 foot, and weighs 160 pounds or so. But 160 pounds against 250 is a big difference.

You’ll have to read for yourself how they resolved their issues, but let me just say it was awesome.

The romance is perfect. Jordan doesn’t always make the perfect choices, and that makes the story even better. She settles for the wrong guy and has to find her way to the right one!

My favorite quote:

“Okay,” Ms. Bonner says, going to a closet at the back of the room, “Now that we all have partners, all husbands should come pick up their projects.”

Pick up their projects? Shrugging, I stand up and stretch my arms. Henry also stands. “No way, dude,” I say. “I’m the man in this relationship.”

“Oh yeah, absolutely,” he says, grinning. He sits back down as I walk to the closet to see the project, which turns out to be one of those fake electronic babies. Oh good God. Ms. Bonner hands me a fake baby boy. The doll has those creepy glass eyes that look like they’re staring straight into my soul. I hold the doll out in front of me like it’s a flaming bag of poo and carry it back to Henry.

“Congratulations, Mommy,” I say, dropping the doll into his hands. “You could’ve told me I knocked you up.”

If you haven’t read it, you’ll really like this one. Check it out!

Read for the 2013 Feminist Reads Challenge

Romance is in the Air Blog Hop

2013-02-07T08:44:00.000-08:00

TWO WINNERS will EACH receive an eBook copy of Playing Hooky and an eBook copy of Daughter of the Goddess!

Follower Love Giveaway Hop

2013-02-04T04:00:00.002-08:00

Follower Love Giveaway Hop

February 5th - 11th

Hosted by I am a Reader, Not a Writer

Co-hosted by The Reader's Antidote

One Winner will receive an eBook copy of PLAYING HOOKY!!!

The Heart.
The God of Love seeks a bride who is pure in heart and full of life—full of soul. Instead of a woman, he finds a child with laughter in her heart. Waiting for her to grow up, he befriends her, pretending to be nothing more than a blue-eyed boy with wild, tangled hair.

The Soul.
Left on the temple doorstep, a young girl turns the lives of the priestesses upside down . . . until one summer day before her eighteenth birthday, a traveling oracle tells her she is to marry a stranger in a foreign land.

The Nightmare.
An ancient demon—half-man, half-snake—wants to destroy anything the gods love. When she was a child, he haunted her dreams, but now he stalks her across the countryside. If he catches her, he’ll devour her

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you for participating!

Ashes & Ice Release Day Blitz

2013-02-04T04:00:00.001-08:00

She is desperate to remember.
He is aching to forget.
Together, they are not broken.
But together, one may not survive.

Jade wakes up with no memory of her past and blood on her hands.

Plagued by wicked thoughts, she searches for answers. Instead, she finds a boy who doesn't offer her answers, but hope. But sometimes, when nightmares turn into reality and death follows you everywhere, hope is not enough.

LUST. LOVE. LOSS.
Sometimes, all that is left are Ashes and Ice

Purchase Here: Amazon

EXCERPT:

“Have you ever been in love?”

I spill my popcorn on my lap. “I, uh, what?” I say, swiping off the kernels. The question catches me off guard.

“You know, in love.”

“No. No, I haven’t.” I shift on the couch, needing more space between us. “What about you?”

“Nah.” She flicks her hand toward me as if she is brushing away nonsense, but the hard look in her eyes says something different.

“Why?”

She points to the TV screen and the couple making out there. “Figured if you had been, then you could explain that to me.”

The guy sweeps the girl up and carries her into bed before they… you know. “Uh, sex?”

She bursts out laughing. “That too. But I was talking about what it feels like to be, you know, in love. Totally, without question. Like, does that,” she points to the screen again, “exist?”

“Yeah, I think it exists.” I think of mom and dad—the way they kissed every morning, hugged a few moments longer than anyone else, laughed so hard they cried, and cuddled, shutting out the world, looking more content than these fakers on the screen. “It exists. And in real life, it’s better than that crap.” I say, suddenly uncomfortable by the moaning coming from the TV.

“I thought you said you’ve never been in love?”

“I haven’t. But I’ve seen it. And I haven’t ever seen anything come close to that in the movies.”

She opens her mouth as if about to ask a question, but then closes it and smiles, accepting my answer. “Well, it’s good that there may be something in life to look forward to.” She drops a kernel of popcorn in her mouth.

“May be?”

“Well nothing is guaranteed. Who knows, I may die an old spinster.” She’s smiling, but her eyes aren’t.

I think about the movie store guy’s possessive eyes, Jesse’s chair fiasco, and Dominic’s leering, my heart. “I doubt that.”

MEET THE AUTHOR

Rochelle grew up dreaming up stories. When she entered high school, she tucked away her creative side and jumped head-first into academics, work, and service projects. She graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Political Science and Communication when she was twenty years old.

After years away from her writing, Rochelle picked up a pen and started fleshing out a character sketch that she outlined when she was twelve. That sketch was the start of the Ashes and Ice story. Rochelle lives in the DC metro area with her husband and daughter. By day, she works as a behavioral therapist. By night, she is a dreamer and is busy tapping out new stories on her keyboard.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook

Purchase Here: Amazon

Playing Hooky Setting: A Winter Wonderland

2013-02-01T04:00:00.000-08:00

Picture credit goes to A Few of My Favorite Things blog

Research taught me that I can't just add a bunch of snow and cold wind and call it an Alaskan winter. Negative 40 degrees requires special gear: thermal long underwear, polar jackets, lined rubber boots... And that's just to go from your car to the grocery store. Any long-term exposure needs a lot more planning.

Cattle are kept indoors during the winter, and skis are used to navigate the university campus in Anchorage. Studded tires are an absolute must for your car.

I discovered that an Alaskan winter is really a whole new world, and I wish, wish, WISH we could live there. I want to stay on Kodiak Island, where Emma & Jason are from, and go to the week-long Whale Festival and hike in the woods to see the Kodiak bears.

I want to go fishing and mountain biking and kayaking like Emma & Jason do every summer, and I want to get all bundled up and drink hot cocoa in the winter.

EXCERPTS:

EMMA'S POV
TALL WITH WIDE shoulders, Jason is muscular from hard labor (construction and welding) and athletic adventures (kayaking and mountain biking). The perpetual scruff movie stars work hard to perfect shadows his jaw, and his tousled black hair kept short. He cuts it every week because it grows too fast, like at least a half inch a day. With the hazel green eyes and the confident grin he usually wears, he’d make any girl swoon.

Well, any girl but me. I’d more likely hit him upside the head with a broom than swoon over him.

“Coffee’s in the kitchen. I need to get dressed and showered; then we can go for pastries at the bakery around the corner.” Just off campus, there’s a scrumptious little shop, but I never have time in the mornings. I turn back to my room but then stop. “Oh, how do I need to dress for the day?”

“Sure.” He runs his hands through his hair, but his eyes are too busy following my ass to pay attention to anything I said.

“Jason.” I snap my fingers. “Up here. What do I need to wear?”

His gaze shifts to my face, and he grins, not even having the decency to flush. “Dress warm.”

Good. So we’re going to have an adventure.

JASON'S POV
OUTSIDE, A BRISK wind brushes against my skin, bringing the flavors of winter—cold snow and log fires and something ancient that stirs a longing in my blood.

But today, Emma is with me, and I can ignore the hollow ache around my heart. The angry fire burning inside my gut calms in her presence.

She’s short, barely coming up to my shoulder, and she has the cute little nose and the short, blonde curls of a cheerleader. Only hers are uncombed and wild.

If I told her how she’d make a cute cheerleader, she would tear me apart. She could flay a man alive with that sharp tongue of hers. And I love every stormy minute of having her as my best friend.

Leading her out to my truck, I watch her hips sway and appreciate how she fills out her faded jeans—the ink stains on the thighs and the dirt at the cuffs indicate she grabbed them off the floor of her room. She’s bundled into her white ski jacket with the fur trim, and the only patch of skin I can see is around her eyes, but I can’t help but think of those pink cotton panties riding up her right cheek and giving me a glimpse of the best ass I’ve ever seen.

My big blue truck with its studded tires waits in the back of the parking lot. My mom has loads of money, but I bought a fixer-upper, an old run-down truck with even more broken parts than rust spots.

With a shiny coat of blue paint and the Hemi engine I added, you’d never know what a sorry state it was in when I first dragged it home by way of tow truck. Mom only shook her head and said, “Just keep it simple.”

She meant don’t add any magic to it, but she needn’t have worried. I wanted to make it run using sweat, grime, and my own two hands. Now I own my own car shop, and I do paint detail work and restore old cars, turning junk into art. Then I sell the cars on eBay and ship them all across the country.

Fixing and customizing cars—that’s my winter job, when tourist season is over and the snow traps me inside, but all summer, I lead tours around our Kodiak Island. People pay loads of money to anyone who will help them take pictures of whales and bears or find the best fishing spots.

“How forlorn he looks. I think he missed us.” I pat the roof of the truck.

“It’s a car.” Emma laughs and tosses two sets of skis into the bed of the truck. This is Alaska. Don’t leave home without them.

“Shh, it’s a truck and you’ll hurt his feelings.”

“I thought cars were all female.”

“Without boy cars, how will you get any baby cars?” I waggle my eyebrows at her and lean forward to catch a whiff of her scent. No perfume, just raw Emma scent.

She arches an eyebrow. “Oh, you finally figured that out, did you?”

I grin down at her. When we were kids, she explained the birds and the bees to me, but I insisted I washed up on the ocean beach. Emma never believed me.

When I got older, I learned we were both right.

Playing Hooky

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For the Love of Swoon Hop

2013-01-31T04:00:00.000-08:00

Thr33 Winners will receive a copy of Playing Hooky!

Excerpt:

A knock on our apartment door, and my sister trills a happy, “Good Morning, Emma,” and begins to sing me Happy Birthday, along with several embarrassing verses we wrote when she was five and I was seven. It includes something about monkeys slipping on banana peels.

“Someone shoot her.” Magpie grumbles from her doorway and slams her door shut.

Still in my skimpy sleep-clothes, I open the door to find my sister—long, blonde hair curled to perfection, not a strand out of place, red hair band matching her flouncy short skirt and the red hearts on her too-cute-for-words tights. Glimmering strands of silver lace peek through her pink sweater. As always, Angelina’s the image of vomit-inducing school-girl perfection.

And standing behind her—

Jason.

My best friend from childhood. The boy—er, man—who should be ten hours away in Kodiak, Alaska, rather than here in Anchorage.

The man staring at my naked legs.

And I’m standing here in my panties and baby-doll T, which clearly shows I’m not wearing a bra, especially as Alaska is cold in February and the door gapes wide open.
I cross my arms over my chest to hide my breasts and duck my bottom half behind the door. “Jason, what are you doing here?”

“To take you out for the day. It’s your twenty-first birthday. Did you think I’d let you celebrate without me?” He grins and slips into the room before I can stop him. His eyes travel up my bare legs (thank goodness I shaved last night) with the ugly wool knee-high socks, the black T with the pink Batman symbol, and ending with my short, blonde hair, sticking up in all directions on one side, matted on the other.

He's gorgeous. He's sexy. What's not to like?

Except I like a man with personality. And Jason has that too:

Inside the closest tent, stalls filled with white horses line the center aisle. Tack hangs along one wall in the entry way, and stacks of hay and barrels of oats fill the other side.

White horses with long horns protruding from their foreheads.

“How did they glue the horns on?” I lean in close to inspect.

“They’re real.”

I raise an eyebrow, and he grins.

“Seriously?”

“Would I lie to you?”

“There was that time you told me the mud pies would give me flying powers if I ate them.”

“Not my fault. I really thought they would.”

Growing up, he concocted the craziest schemes: trapping leprechauns and hunting for the pot of gold at the rainbow’s end, building our own invisible clubhouse far from where hikers and tourists would trek, or inventing flying bicycles. When the flying bicycle, version umpteen-thousand, failed to fly, he mixed up his own batch of mud pies.

We ate them (ick!) and jumped out of our favorite climbing tree. I broke my leg, and he didn’t even get a scratch. The next day, he picked me magical wild flowers that if I sniffed them would make the pain go away.

I threw them at him and said I never wanted to see him again . . . not that it lasted long.

Now I stand in a circus tent with my insane best friend with seven white unicorns.

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Allusive Aftershock review

2013-01-30T04:00:00.000-08:00

Allusive Aftershock

by Susan Griscom

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THE STORY

There’s no slow ramp up in Allusive Aftershock. From opening scene to the very end, the story has you on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next and if they will survive the latest problem.

What makes this story so amazing is how realistic the dire situation was—three teenagers trying to survive after a natural disaster ripped their home and town and much of the surrounding countryside apart.

THE CHARACTERS

Adela – I loved how REAL she was. In some ways, she was supernaturally perfect in how spunky and caring and sweet and gutsy she was. Thrown into a horrible situation, she proved her strength every step of the journey.

Yet at the beginning, she struggled with envy and jealousy when Court could calm her horse. She purposefully and foolishly disobeyed Court’s orders to not ride Big Blue because she wanted to prove she knew better with her own horse.

And that was a very realistic depiction of a teenage girl: smart, sweet, funny, cute, and a little bit of foolishness thrown in. And I loved watching her grow throughout the story.

Courtland – He was absolutely sooooo thoughtful. He was strong and smart and an anchor throughout the whole story. A perfect gentleman and a great match for Adela. Did I mention swoon-worthy? And sweet? And muscles and emerald green eyes? But my favorite part about him is his connections to animals. I wish I had that ability.

Max – Half annoying jerk, half caring friend. I think the addition of his character was downright genius—deepening the plot and the character development and strengthening the story. Okay, I admit. I normally hate love triangles because (1) someone is always going to get hurt and (2) the girl rarely picks the guy I like.

But Max was different. He had deep issues that needed to be worked out with Courtland, and his story arc was one of my favorites.

OVERALL

5 STARS!!! I highly recommend this.

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Joint Book Review: Seraphina

2013-01-28T10:48:00.000-08:00

Seraphina

by Rachel Hartman

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RITA:

I got this as an audiobook from the library just before we left on our Thanksgiving trip to Memaw and Papa’s house. Since we didn’t have a family read for the long ride, I offered my book.

I didn’t know what to expect when I picked this up. I’d heard good things, and knew it was about a half-dragon. Beyond that, well, I just hoped it would be age appropriate for my three little spiders (ages 6, 8, & 10).

TJ:

I would place the age range slightly above the little spiders’ age range. Fortunately anything that might have been inappropriate was worded subtle enough that it passed over their heads.

RITA:

Both the writing and the world building are more complex than the spiders are used to, but they’re loving it almost as much as we did. Even our youngest laughs about some of the scenes and talks about the half-dragon girl, and here, I figured she’d fall asleep out of boredom.

TJ:

The vocabulary was a bit advanced, which I loved; there were even a few words I had not previously known. These words were easy enough to understand in context, and don’t worry there is no vocabulary quiz at the end. ;-)

RITA:

I liked the vocabulary too, but at the same time, it sometimes lulled my mind into a sleepy state. Maybe it was the reader’s soft voice and the way it rolled melodically through my head, but whatever it was, my mind would wander out of the story and then I’d be lost for a moment.

Best part of this story is the dragons. Every word the dragons say shows just how non-human they are: their emotionless nature, their analytical minds, their inability to understand the basic human concepts of love, honor, or empathy.

TJ:

The best parts for me were when she meets the other half-dragons. I especially liked Lars exclaiming “I LIKE IT LOUD!” in the middle of his concert. I liked seeing how they were all marked with different strengths and afflictions and how they had adapted to them. It is interesting that so many of them excel at the arts when it is something that dragonkind cannot seem to grasp.

RITA:

Haha, Lars was awesome. And Mrs. Fuss Pots hitting Seraphina with a book! That had us all laughing too.

Two things that made me grit my teeth:

(1) Seraphina’s constant lying to keep her secrets from people who I liked and felt like she could trust, and she kept cowering and wallowing in self pity. Oh, I’m so ugly with my scales. If they knew, they would revile me. So THANKFUL when she finally got over that.

(2) The racist bigotry from both dragons and humans in their great dislike and distrust of each other. Why can’t we all just get along? Why can’t we love each other for our differences?

Yet both of these things added tension and world building and character development to the story. They frustrated me, but at the same time left me in awe of the author for the added detail.

TJ:

Describing music in words has always been a difficult task. Yet the author seemed to make it look easy. As an old band geek and choir singer I have a passion for music. I also spent a few years in architecture classes (until the lack of sleep took its toll). At one point she begins describing the music using architectural structure elements, I was in awe hearing her describe the music this way spoke straight to my soul.

Cover Reveal: Playing Hooky

2013-01-25T04:00:00.000-08:00

Playing Hooky

by Rita Webb

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eBook available for purchase on Amazon and B&N

Valentine’s Day.

And my 21st birthday.

Whoop-de-doo.

Just another college day full of classes and more homework than is humanly possible.

…until Jason, my best-friend-since-kindergarten, shows up to take me out for the day.

Like old times: the two of us on a wacky adventure, playing hooky from real life. With his lopsided grin and tickets to a circus full of misfits and monsters, he introduces me to a whole new world—one full of magic and mystery—and turns my reality upside down.

Except nothing goes as planned, and we end up running through the city to find a missing siren before someone brews a love potion with her blood.

Sirens and love potions, witches and elves, and Valentine kisses. Nothing will be the same for me again.

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Metalic Rose by Spider Girl Webb #2

2013-01-24T04:00:00.000-08:00

My daughter SpiderGirl Webb #2 has an eye for color, texture and shape. She made this picture for me and I wanted to share it with all of you.

Cover Reveal: Justice by Rhiannon Paille

2013-01-22T03:30:00.000-08:00

Justice

Rhiannon Paille

(The Ferryman and the Flame #2)

January 22nd 2013

How far would you go to destroy yourself?

Krishani always knew he would have to go to the Lands of Men, but he never thought it would be like this. Enemies everywhere, an ancestor he can't respect, elders he can't trust, a curse he can't stop and friends he can't help but hate. Desperate to end the pain, he sets out on a quest to find the other Flames and face the enemy that took everything from him.

Art by Marc Wolfe (www.marcwolfeart.com) / Typography by Frankie Rose

Blood & Gold
Rhiannon Paille
(The Ferryman and the Flame #2.5 -- JUSTICE from the villain's POV)
June 2013

The Daed are pawns to one of the most powerful members of the Valtanyana. Crestaos is insane, his hunger for the Flames insatiable. The closer the Daed get to achieving his goal, the more expendable they become.

Art by Paragraphic Designs / Typography by Rhiannon Paille

Rhiannon Paille - Author Bio

Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter
Rhi was never a normal girl. Her life was an urban fantasy wrapped in a paranormal romance and served with a side of horror. To escape her everyday weirdness she began writing fantasy. She studied at U of Sedona and MIMT, obtaining a PhD in Metaphysical Science and Parapsychology. She's married to a chef/comic book shop owner and has a fondness for architecture. She frequents twitter and facebook, but if you really want to get to know her you should visit her site: YA Fantasy Author

Feature & Follow 1.21.2013

2013-01-21T07:35:00.001-08:00

Hosted by Parajunkee's View and Alison Can Read

Q: Who is your favorite villain from a book?

Good question!

I like villains with complex motivations. I want to read a villain who can inspire their people to follow them because of their kindness and goodness. Yeah, I want a good villain.

It drives me nuts when the bad guy will kill off his followers because they failed. That's just a stupid policy. Then you have to replace him with someone with less experience, and failures are an important part of learning.

So one of my favorite villains is Dustfinger in the book Inkheart by Cornelia Funke. Dustfinger has one goal: to return home. And he'll hurt anybody to get what he wants.

But at the same time, he's caring and compassionate. And as a reader, I want him to achieve his goal . . . even though his methods aren't the best.

Another favorite villain is Allie Beckstrom's father in Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk. I mentioned him in another post. Throughout the series, you don't know whether to root for him or against him. His methods are evil, but he's after a noble goal: to purify the taint in magic. Of course, he also wants eternal life, and it seems as though he's willing to take his daughter's life to achieve that goal. But then every now and then, he does something nice and good. Leaves you in a quandary as to whether to trust him or not.

Thankful Thursday 1.17.13

2013-01-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

Thankful Thursday is a meme hosted by Inspired Kathy at I Am A Reader, Not A Writer.

I am thankful for grapes. No seriously. Grapes are awesome.

Grapes are like nature's candy. I used to keep a bowl on the kitchen counter, and as I went about my day, I'd grab a few everytime I passed through the kitchen. Yummy.

But I have this problem with food where I easily become allergic to any foods that I eat too frequently. I've been forced to give up: wheat, corn, eggs, milk (and then later, goat's milk too), soy, yeast, coconut, pineapple, GRAPES, and most recently Hemp milk. Or anything made with one of those ingredients. I have been sorely missing ice cream lately. And tacos.

A couple months ago, I was visiting my in-laws and putting grapes on the kids' plates at lunchtime, and I grabbed a handful for myself. Imagine my joy when I had NO scratchy throat or burning in my mouth!!!

Out of all the foods I've given up, I've only gotten ONE back: grapes. It took two years of not eating any for me to recover from that one allergy, and now I'm soooo very careful not to overeat them again. We only buy them once every couple months, and I only have them once during the couple days before they are gone.

And it gives me hope that someday, I can have ice cream and tacos and not get dizzy or swell up like a balloon or get a sore throat or have a hard time breathing.

Sometimes it's the little things, like grapes, that make you appreciate life.

Joint Book Review: Crimson Crown

2013-01-16T10:31:00.000-08:00

Crimson Crown

Cinda Williams Chima

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Joining me today is my husband TJ to ~~argue~~ discuss with me the book Crimson Crown by Cinda Williams Chima.

RITA:

I’ve been waiting all year for this book, the last in this series, so when it finally came into the library, I immediately picked it up to read.

TJ said, “Oh no, you don’t. I’m reading it first.”

“I promise I won’t tell you anything.”

“You’re Sagittarian. You always tell me everything.”

I’m not quite sure if that’s exactly how the argument went, but we’ve had this argument a 137 times in the last 13 years. So this is a pretty good approximation.

In the end, he won. I have an eidetic memory, and when I try to sum up, I end up reading the book, page for page, from my mind’s eye.

I decided to be nice and let him go first.

Thus I had to wait 24 hours. Grrrr.

TJ:

Not that I gave her much of a choice.

Most of the time Rita is the one who reads YA and then begs me to read them, but this series had one big advantage. I like wolves!

I quickly tore through the first three books and was then forced to wait for the final installment. That’s the problem with finding a good series several books in; you get spoiled because you can read several books back to back and then reach for the next one only to discover it isn’t written yet.

When I finally got The Crimson Crown, Rita didn’t have to wait long. I finished it in under 12 hours. Of course that means I was attempting to homeschool the kids on two hours sleep.

RITA:

12 hours is a long time to wait after you’ve already waited a year.

TJ:

It was generally agreed that daddy was a little grumpy, but it was worth it. Rita did not seem too appreciative when I crawled into bed at six in the morning excited about the book and letting her know it was her turn.

RITA:

He kept the light on all night, so I already got little sleep. Being woken up at 6 made me grumpier than he was.

TJ:

That did not keep her from following in my footsteps and staying up until six the following morning.

RITA:

7:30 was when I finished. I got about an hour and 15 minutes to sleep before I had to log into work.

But it was soooooo worth it.

I love books where the male and female lead are both strong. Raisa was not a girl who waited to be rescued. She acted decisively and with strength. She never backed down. She never caved. And she was a queen who would walk into fire to save her people. Or into the lion’s den to rescue her sister.

TJ:

I agree, Raisa and Han both show a lot of courage and strength throughout the series but especially in the Crimson Crown. There are so many different factions involved that it takes both of them to unite the kingdom, …er queendom.

I like how the author showed all that Han had done and gone through was for Raisa. It would have been easy to make him into a power hungry lord who wanted to usurp her power.

RITA:

Yes, everybody vying for Raisa’s hand in marriage—Nightwalker, Micah Bayar, the general’s moronic sons, the king from the neighboring realm—for power, but Han wanted Raisa simply because he loved her. However, it would take a miracle for him to have her since marriages between a queen and a jinx-flinger are forbidden.

I loved how Han and Raisa’s love mirrored the story of Alger Waterlow and Queen Hanalea a thousand years before. The past and the present intertwined to make the book so much richer.

Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop

2013-01-15T16:14:00.001-08:00

Two winners will each receive a copy of Daughter of the Goddess & Playing Hooky

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