Sunday, February 24, 2013

Review: Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four by Nya Jade

Title: Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four (Shapers #1)
Author: Nya Jade
Source: Received through blog tour in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis:

The students of Green Lane Academy roam their halls unaware that below their manicured campus exists a prestigious school of an entirely different kind . . .

Sixteen-year-old Phoebe Pope has enrolled at the Campus Below: a spy academy for shape-shifters hidden deep beneath the grounds of a boarding school whose humans unknowingly protect it. There, thanks to a carefully planned schedule, she leads a double life: spy trainee Below and normal teenager Above.

As if two course loads, concealing a secret power she alone wields, and coping with her father’s recent death weren’t enough, Phoebe finds herself developing major feelings for actor and teen heartthrob Colten Chase, who attends the Campus Above and appears to be majoring in winning Phoebe’s heart. But when officials learn that Phoebe may be at the center of a startling prophecy, she becomes the target of shape-shifting assassins who will stop at nothing to suppress the truth.

Now Phoebe’s lessons about Shaper’s enemies and spycraft take on great importance as a menace stalks the campus, with Phoebe as its target. Meanwhile, what began as an unlikely relationship with Colten, quickly morphs into heartache when she suspects that something sinister lurks beneath this movie star’s glitter and fame. Suddenly, Phoebe’s caught in a mesh of lies, betrayals, and danger where she doesn’t know who to trust, and needs to rely on herself—and her secret power—to get to the truth and to stay alive.



Review:



 
Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four is the first book in the Shapers series by Nya Jade. The story centers around Phoebe, a 16 year old girl who enrolls in an academy for shape-shifters. Humans live and take classes above ground – while the shifters live below ground. The humans are unknowingly protecting shifters from their enemy. They also take classes upstairs, mingling in with the humans and somehow this setup works perfectly...until now. There is an insider taking information back to the enemy, and Phoebe finds herself in all sorts of trouble.

The world building was great. I found the double-lives of the shape-shifters interesting. However, I wonder how their entrances to the upstairs academy go unnoticed. I mean, you would think that the humans would see others using these entrances and wonder where they were coming from or going to.

The love interest is Colton – a Hollywood movie star that is also new to the academy. While all the other girls are not-so-secretly drooling over him, he seems to only have eyes for Phoebe. Phoebe is down to earth, and not at all like the glamorous stars that Colton is often surrounded by. Understandably, Phoebe has her guard up. Colton seems to genuinely care for her, but he is so mysterious. Phoebe feels like she can't trust anybody. A nice little relationship develops between them – nothing too steamy though. It's age appropriate material for young adult readers. I would have liked to have seen just a little more romance between these two.

I liked the character of Phoebe. I didn't feel a connection to her at first though. She has been through a lot – including the recent loss of her father. She seemed a little distant to me at the very beginning but was easy to relate to once she started warming up. She quickly became friends with Hayley, who was such a great background character. She had such a bubbly personality and brought some much needed smiles to Phoebe's stressful life.

There was a lot of action involved, as well as mystery and suspense. There were some twists in the story, including an unexpected traitor at the end. I liked that the author didn't give out hints and I didn't see it coming until it hit me in the face. This is a very unique story that fans of YA paranormal romance will love!

Visit the author here:

Purchase at the following places:
Amazon (kindle)
Amazon (paperback)

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Blog Tour: Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four


Welcome to the Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four Blog Tour! It's a great young adult paranormal story that I'm reading now. I should have my review up in a day or two. Until then, keep reading for more info on the book, the author, and a giveaway!!

Title: Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four (Shapers #1)
Author: Nya Jade

The students of Green Lane Academy roam their halls unaware that below their manicured campus exists a prestigious school of an entirely different kind . . .

Sixteen-year-old Phoebe Pope has enrolled at the Campus Below: a spy academy for shape-shifters hidden deep beneath the grounds of a boarding school whose humans unknowingly protect it. There, thanks to a carefully planned schedule, she leads a double life: spy trainee Below and normal teenager Above.

As if two course loads, concealing a secret power she alone wields, and coping with her father’s recent death weren’t enough, Phoebe finds herself developing major feelings for actor and teen heartthrob Colten Chase, who attends the Campus Above and appears to be majoring in winning Phoebe’s heart. But when officials learn that Phoebe may be at the center of a startling prophecy, she becomes the target of shape-shifting assassins who will stop at nothing to suppress the truth.

Now Phoebe’s lessons about Shaper’s enemies and spycraft take on great importance as a menace stalks the campus, with Phoebe as its target. Meanwhile, what began as an unlikely relationship with Colten, quickly morphs into heartache when she suspects that something sinister lurks beneath this movie star’s glitter and fame. Suddenly, Phoebe’s caught in a mesh of lies, betrayals, and danger where she doesn’t know who to trust, and needs to rely on herself—and her secret power—to get to the truth and to stay alive.


Purchase at the following places:
Amazon (kindle)
Amazon (paperback)

******************

  About the author:

Nya Jade is a singer-songwriter and author based in San Francisco. Her music videos have aired on the VH1, BET, and MTV networks. USA Today hailed Nya as a “young female troubadour worth keeping your eyes and ears on,” in an entertainment feature on up-and-coming singer-songwriters. “Her cool singing voice recalls Sade,” said the LA Times.

Between writing and performing new music, Nya took a musical sabbatical to focus on writing a novel—an endeavor she found quite daunting, until she began looking at each chapter as a verse in a very long song. Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four is her first novel.

In her free time, Nya enjoys hanging out with family and friends, searching for amazing gluten-free desserts, and bargain hunting for her next pair of funky shoes.

Nya holds a B.A. in Economics and an M.A. in Sociology, both from Stanford University.


Tour Wide Giveaway:


a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
 
 

Crazy, Stupid Love Giveaway Hop!!!



Welcome to the Crazy, Stupid Love Giveaway Hop hosted by Talk Supe! The New Adult genre has recently become my favorite! I love Young Adult books, but sometimes I just like something a little more... sexy. I loved the intense passion in the New Adult books that I've read so far.

Easy by Tammara Webber is one of my favorite New Adult books that I've read, so I'm giving away one paperback copy to a lucky reader. The giveaway is international as long as The Book Depository sends to your country. See a list of possible countries HERE.

 Rescued by a stranger.
Haunted by a secret
Sometimes, love isn’t easy…

He watched her, but never knew her. Until thanks to a chance encounter, he became her savior…

The attraction between them was undeniable. Yet the past he’d worked so hard to overcome, and the future she’d put so much faith in, threatened to tear them apart.

Only together could they fight the pain and guilt, face the truth—and find the unexpected power of love.

A groundbreaking novel in the New Adult genre, Easy faces one girl's struggle to regain the trust she's lost, find the inner strength to fight back against an attacker, and accept the peace she finds in the arms of a secretive boy.

Enter using the Rafflecopter below:



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Participants:

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Free eBooks!


**Note - I have no idea how long these will remain free ** 
 
 Title: Amethyst (Guardian #1)
Author: Heather Bowhay

College-bound Lexi Adams leads no ordinary life. Premonitions dictate her every move compelling her to rescue strangers day and night. After years of self-sacrifice, she decides to ignore one, but innocent people die. So, when the next premonition depicts her own death, Lexi has a decision to make.

Except more complications arise when a series of strange illnesses and murders devastate her small town, and co-worker Jessica Nelson insists Lexi can help. According to Jessica, everyone is born with an inner energy called Essence. Only a select few, Amethysts, can control Essence and heal people. Jessica claims to be an Amethyst and asks Lexi to join her and a group of her friends as they track the murderers.

Lexi considers helping them only to find out that not only do Jessica's friends have a hidden agenda, but they also harbor extraordinary abilities. Even more unsettling, they have connections with the Ray-pacs – the sadistic killers who are preying on human Essence. Ultimately, Lexi must decide if life, not death, equals salvation. And if so, is she willing to make sacrifices and join her friends in eradicating the Ray-pacs?

Amethyst is the first novel in the Guardian series, a spellbinding young adult, urban fantasy series laced with paranormal elements.
 
Free on Amazon and B&N
 
 
**************
 
 
 Title: Against the Wall (Against the Wall #1)
Author: Julie Prestsater
 
Shelly Gelson had it all...a job teaching English at Carver High, her best friend, Mel, working by her side and engaged to her high school sweetheart, Chase Marino. That is until Chase breaks her heart and leaves her for another teacher at the school. Now Shel is left broken hearted and trying to figure out what she wants while watching Chase and the home wrecker make moon eyes at each other. Enter Matt Fuller, Shel's friend for the past 5 years and the perfect rebound. He's gorgeous, smart, funny and fits into Shel's idea of the right guy. Only problem is there may be more there then just a simple rebound. Is it a way to fill a void left by Chase, or is there more smoldering between these two friends? Find out what happens when the bell rings and the teenage drama ends and the adult drama begins. Who says being a teacher is boring? They obviously haven't met the teachers at Carver High. 
 
 
 
**************
 
 
  Title: Blood Debt (Touched #1)
Author: Nancy Straight
 
Her whole life, it had just been the two of them. Before her mother’s last breath, she gave Camille the information she had craved her entire life: the identity of her father. Daring to contact him, Camille was welcomed by an entire family she never knew existed. But nothing comes without a price, as she discovers when her family claims a legendary heritage tracing back to a centaur touched by Zeus.

As she learns the secrets of her Centaur bloodline, she is drawn into a forbidden love with Drake. Her life may be the blood debt required to pay for her mother’s transgressions. The same person who once held her mother captive, and forced her into decades of hiding, now controls Camille. Her only chance is to seek a piece of her mother’s past that will win her freedom and the life she desperately wants.
 
 
Free on Amazon and B&N
 
 
**************
 
 
  Title: Awakened (Vampire Awakenings #1)
Author: Brenda K. Davies
 
Traumatized by her past, and struggling to move on from it, Sera has spent the past three years of college hiding herself from the world and content to stay that way. A chance encounter with Liam shatters her sheltered world, leaving her stunned and shaken by the strange feelings and emotions he arises in her, feelings she never thought she would experience and that frighten her in their intensity. Harboring a dark and deadly secret of his own, Liam knows that he should stay away from Sera; that he will only bring her more hurt, but he is irresistibly drawn to her and unable to deny himself the pleasure that only she can bring to him. But when their pasts collide with their present, and Liam’s true nature is revealed, will their love for each other be enough, or will they be torn apart forever? 
 
Free on Amazon and B&N
 
 
**************
 

  Title: Falling (The Hemlock Bay #1)
Author: Amber Jaeger
 
 For sixteen-year-old Bixby, the last few years have been a misery of loss and rejection. Her mother’s death, her grandmother’s Alzheimer’s and her father’s despair and distance have robbed her of the family she once had. With only her brother Lincoln and her imaginary friends from the town she dreams of every night on her side, she struggles on.

But then Lincoln is killed in a suspicious car accident and Bixby is devastated to lose her best—and only—friend. Desperate to have him back, she accepts an offer from a stranger from her nightmares.

Jordan delivers on his promise and Bixby finds she must deliver on hers. The problem is she doesn’t know who—or what—Jordan really is or what exactly she promised in returned.

Each evening they spend together in her dreams brings them closer together and tears Bixby further from her own reality. What does Jordan really want and what is Bixby going to lose in return for the only thing she thought she wanted most in the world?
 
 
 
**************
 
 
  Title: La Luxure: Discover Your Blood Lust (Human Vampire #1)
Author: C.D. Hussey
 
Deep in the heart of the French Quarter, where the Bourbon Street revelry is nothing more than a far off whisper, underground blood-bar La Luxure beckons those with darker tastes through its narrow archway.

When tourist Julia Brown stumbles unwittingly into Luxure, she first thinks it's nothing more than a swanky Goth club. But when a patron is found dead on the street, drained of blood and covered in bites and marks, Julia begins to fear there's something more sinister lurking below the sleek interior.

And at the center of it all is Armand Laroque, who awakens a lust she never knew existed and a temptation impossible to resist.
 
 
Free on Amazon and B&N
 
 
**************
 
 
  Title: My Familiar Stranger (Black Swan #1)
Author: Victoria Danann
 
A SECRET SOCIETY, HOT HEROES, AND VAMPIRES come together where chance intersects romance for a once-in-a-lifetime adventure proving that true love can find you in the strangest places, even far, far from home.

Minutes ahead of inevitable assassination, Elora Laiken is forcibly transported to an alternate dimension similar, but not identical, to her own. She is stranded. Alone. Far from home. A stranger in a "strangish" land. Of course a girl could suffer worse problems than having gorgeous suitors. Perhaps more importantly, in the midst of an epidemic of vampire related abductions, can she stay alive long enough to choose between an honor debt, true love, or the breathlessness of single-minded passion?

My Familiar Stranger is a full length, stand-alone, Paranormal/Fantasy Romance novel that also sets up the foundation for the Black Swan series. It is loved by fans of paranormal romance, fantasy romance, and urban fantasy.
 
 
Free on Amazon and B&N
 
 
**************
 
 
  Title: The Zombie Story (The Chronicles of Orlando #1)
Author: M.M. Shelley
 
Unfolding on the streets of Los Angeles is a new breed of monster...

Orlando, fresh from the mid west, arrives at his new high school on his Harley Davidson. All he wants is to make it through the day, and begin his training as a Zombie Hunter.But someone has different plans for him.

The Zombie Story is the first novella in a young adult series.
 
 
Free on Amazon and B&N
  

**************
 
 
Title: Reveal (Cryptid Tales #1)
Author: Brina Courtney
 
Shay could be the key to ending a war that humans don't know exist. Of a race of beings that aren't real, or are they?

Shay Tafford's childhood has been fatherless, filled instead with memories of speaking to the dead. She is forced to hide her unique ability from those living around her. That's why it's been comforting to have Jeremy, a child ghost, as her confidante. But recently he's been absent, perhaps lost as her father is. When Shay meets Hugh, the guy she's had a crush on for weeks, and finds he can speak to ghosts too she's just starting to find a normalcy in her life.
But as Hugh reveals the truth to Shay, about who she really is and about what it is she can do, he erases all chances she had at a normal existence. Turns out talking to ghosts is just scratching the surface of her genetically engineered gifts. Shay learns she may be part of an age old prophecy that could save the entire race of cryptids. But can she?
  
 
Free on Amazon and B&N 
 
 
**************
 
 
  Title: Dark Creations: Gabriel Rising
Authors: Jennifer & Christopher Martucci
 
Gabriel James mysteriously appears in Harbingers Falls and Melissa Martin’s life is forever changed. Dark Creations is a story of young love struggling to survive in the face of evil.

Deeply romantic and captivating, Dark Creations will leave you breathless. 
 
Free on Amazon and B&N

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Recalled Blog Tour!!!



Welcome to the Recalled Blog Tour!!! Keep reading for more info on this awesome book, the author, and a giveaway! I recommend this book to anyone that likes new adult paranormal romances! Check out my review HERE.


Recalled by Cambria Hebert (Death Escorts, #1)
Publication date: February 15th, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance with paranormal, thriller and mystery elements

 Love or Death? A simple question really. The choice seems obvious. But. What if you never knew love, what if your life was spent just trying to survive? What if you knew your fate before you were fully grown?

And then you died.

And you were given another chance. A better chance.

This new life depended upon one thing: your job. And so you agreed. You thought it would be simple. You thought it would be cut and dry.

It never is.

And now you are left holding the fate of someone else in the palm of your hand and you have to make the ultimate choice.

Love or Death?


Find this book at the following places:
Amazon (kindle)
Amazon (paperback)
 
 
 
 
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About the author:
 
Author. Blogger. Latte Sipper.

Cambria Hebert is an author who wrote her first book at the age of fifteen. It was terrible. But the passion for writing never went away so years later when she opened her laptop and started typing she worked until she wrote a book that she hopes everyone will be as excited about as she is.

Cambria is obsessed with werewolves and is terrified of chickens (they are creepy!)She is an animal lover that would choose coffee over food and her favorite TV show is the Vampire Diaries (Hell-O Damon!)
 
Website
Goodreads
Twitter
Facebook
 
***********************
 
 Giveaway!!!
 
Enter this tour wide giveaway for your chance to win a Kindle Fire! US only - sorry!
 
 
a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Monday, February 18, 2013

Hereafter Release Day Book Tour & Giveaway

Hereafter (Reaper #2)
Release Date: 18 February 2013
In Death I could finally see the importance of Life…

After being forced to become a Reaper Council member and being torn away from the one she loves, Rowan Harper must learn to accept her altered Fate as well as her death and move on. A task easier said than done, especially when witnessing those you love suffer in the wake of your death.

When an unlikely alli provides information that could change everything, Rowan sets out on a journey through Purgatory with her beloved by her side and a nonchalant Tracker to learn the true meaning of the word sacrifice. Another task which seems easier said than done, especially with the threat of Purgatory’s ability to corrupt your soul the longer you’re in its grip looming above their heads.

*********************

Excerpt:


Jet was what had made all of this seem tolerable. If I had to be a Reaper, then I could endure it, but only if I was able to visit with Jet from time to time. Sorrow cracked its way through my soul again. I didn’t want this. I didn’t want the waiting and the yearning. I didn’t want to be a part of the horribleness death was, not alone, not without Jet.

I didn’t want this to be my hereafter.

“Rowan?” a familiar voice called out to me. I left my eyes closed and smiled, afraid that if I opened them disappointment would crush me because he wouldn’t be there in front of me, afraid that it was nothing but a memory of him calling my name swimming to the surface of my broken mind in my moment of heartbreaking want.

A hand softly brushed against my cheek, and I slowly allowed my eyes to flutter open. Glistening sapphire eyes held my attention as I fumbled to make sense of how Jet was in front of me. Happiness and excitement bubbled through me and escaped in the form of laughter. My arms wrapped around his neck, and I drew him in closer to me, vowing to never let him go again.

“I’m glad to see you, too.” He chuckled, a sound I’d missed more than I knew.

“I feel like I’ve been waiting forever,” I said, releasing the grip I had around his neck in favor of simply holding his hands in mine.

“Death has a way of making things feel eternal,” he said, his tone etched with heartache.

I didn’t want to talk of death. I didn’t even want to think about it. All I wanted was to savor this moment because I wasn’t sure how long we would get. Leaning forward, I pressed my lips to his and felt my desire to be with him always pulsating through my soul.

Hereafter is available in ebook format at the following places:
Amazon
B&N
Smashwords

*********************  
 Touch (Reaper #1)
Seventeen-year-old Rowan Harper knows her life is forever changed the moment her schizophrenic mother commits suicide.

What Rowan doesn't realize is how much her mother’s choice altered her own fate. It’s not until after meeting Jet, a sapphire-eyed dead boy, Rowan begins to learn of her new destiny as becoming her mother’s replacement for something she never knew existed.

Plus a bonus short story, 'Choice', told from Jet’s perspective!



Choice (Reaper #1.5)


People often say everything happens for a reason.

Seventeen-year-old Jet Donavan Mathews is about to find out that statement is not always true. Jet will learn that sometimes there are moments which were never meant to occur, moments where you are left with a choice.

Choice is a Hereafter short story of approx. 2,500 words.

*********************  
 About the author:

Jennifer Snyder lives in North Carolina were she spends most of her time writing young adult fiction, reading, and struggling to stay on top of housework. She is an instant coffee lover with an obsession for spiral bound notebooks and smooth writing pens. Jennifer lives with her husband and two children, who endure listening to songs that spur inspiration on repeat and tolerate her love for all paranormal, teenage-targeted TV shows.
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Tour Wide Giveaway!!!


a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
 
Visit the other blogs on this tour:
 
 

Review: Recalled by Cambria Hebert

 Title: Recalled (Death Escorts #1)
Author: Cambria Hebert
Source: Received through blog tour in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis:

Love or Death? A simple question really. The choice seems obvious. But. What if you never knew love, what if your life was spent just trying to survive? What if you knew your fate before you were fully grown?

And then you died.

And you were given another chance. A better chance.

This new life depended upon one thing: your job. And so you agreed. You thought it would be simple. You thought it would be cut and dry.

It never is.

And now you are left holding the fate of someone else in the palm of your hand and you have to make the ultimate choice.

Love or Death?




Review:



 
Recalled is the first book in the new Death Escorts series by Cambria Hebert. I don't know how much I should talk about this book. The synopsis is VERY vague, and maybe the author wants people to not really know anything going into this book. So, I won't sum it up but I will say that the job mentioned is a Death Collector.

Recalled is told from two points of view – Dex and Piper. Dex is a great, complex character. He is the ideal bad boy that makes girls swoon – rough around the edges but good deep down. He ends up having, ummm... two identities. I can't even explain this to you. You just have to read it. I was totally blown away at this point in the book. It's weird and intriguing at the same time.

Piper is the female lead character. She is a poor college student, who works at a diner and interns at a clinic. She aspires to be a doctor and she is a very caring person. She has a special “gift” which makes her interesting. I really enjoyed her best friend, Frankie, who brought a lot of laughs to the story.

The plot is very unique and held my attention the entire time. There was a lot of mystery and suspense in this. I would liked to have seen more romance, considering the amount of time that Dex and Piper spent with each other. The ending had quite the twist to it. I didn't know what to expect while approaching the ending. I'm not sure how/if this storyline continues into the next book. I know this is a series, but sometimes series have different characters. The ending of this story was wrapped up in a way that it could be the end, but I'd love to see it continue on.

Find this book at the following places:
Amazon (kindle)
Amazon (paperback)

Visit the author here: