Pages

Justine's books

Last Sacrifice
My Soul to Take
My Soul to Save
My Soul to Keep
My Soul to Steal
Wings
Spells
Illusions
Sing Me to Sleep
Girl Stays in the Picture
The Eternal Ones
Beastly
Ash
Huntress
Secret Society
The Trust
Ascendant
Rampant
0.4
Fairy Tale


Justine's favorite books »

Friday, 31 May 2013

Cover Reveal: Child of the Sacred Earth- Alicia Michaels

Cover Reveal

Title: Child of the Sacred Earth

Series: The Lost Kingdom of Fallada, Book #2
By: Alicia Michaels
Publisher: Anchor Group Publishing



Release Date: June 2013 (Exact Date TBA)



Blurb:
Get a degree, get a job, save adorable foster siblings from the clutches of the evil foster mom …



These are Jocylene Sanders’ top priorities as she enters her sophomore year of college. The last thing she expects is to find herself the champion of an entire kingdom. However, that is just what happens when the mysterious Faerie, Rothatin Longspear, appears to her tasking her with saving a parallel world full of creatures from her wildest dreams.



Jocylene journeys with him into the world of Fallada, hoping for answers about her birth parents and background. What she finds is a mystifying past, and an even more uncertain future, as her heart becomes entangled with the stoic, battle-hardened Rothatin, as well as Eli, the untroubled Panther Shifter with no loyalties and no home. With her heart and soul pulled in so many directions, can Jocylene find the strength needed to become the savior one nation so desperately needs?




Excerpt:
Okay,” Jocylene held her hands up to halt Jake’s speech. “Let me get this straight. My mother is the bitch queen of all evil and wants to take over the world. You think that me and a band of teenage princesses have enough combined power to stop her, and you expect me to lead battles in this epic war against a hostile takeover?”

Jake cleared his throat again and blushed, nodded his head slowly. “That about sums it up, Princess.”

“Hell. No. Hell-to-the-no. Forget it. There is no way you can convince me that I’ve got what it takes to lead a freaking army, let alone go up against a woman evil and sadistic enough to kidnap seven girls and cast them into another world. Her doing that was obviously a warning; ‘stay away little princesses’. Fine by me!”

“You are being irrational,” Rothatin said in that infuriatingly arrogant way of his. Jocylene turned her narrowed eyes on him.

“Says a man who flew to my rescue tonight on a gigantic owl! If your world is separate from mine, then it’s all the better for me because I have no desire to go there or become part of anyone else's plans.”

“Do you have any idea how powerful you are?” Wil asked, his hands on his hips as he came forward and stared down at her from behind the smoke trailing out of his pipe.

“I do,” Rothatin muttered as he stared out over the blanket of pine trees beneath them.
“I’ve seen it with my own eyes. It is easy to see why Eranna would be afraid of her.”

“Sounds to me like she doesn’t have much to fear,” Jocylene countered. “If she’s as powerful as you’re telling me, I don’t stand a chance in Hell.”

“Not by yourself,” Jake agreed. “But with the others—“

“Where are they?” she asked, her arms spread wide. “Where are these others girls? As far as I can tell, you guys are just casting your net out to see who you can catch. Sure, you got lucky once and now you’ve done it a second time. But seven seems like a big number when we’re talking about the possible end of the world here. Besides, things happen in this world too; cancer, car wrecks … who says these other girls are even alive? I’m having a hard time believing your luck will hold out. And then what happens? I’ve given up what’s left of my life fighting for a lost cause.”

“Do not think to question the powers of the Fae Queen,” Rothatin growled, coming up from his relaxed pose against the ship’s rail, his shoulders squared and his jaw gone hard and tight. “Her power is ten times that of the dark queen and her all-seeing eyes are everywhere. She will find them, just as she found you.”

“I’m sure your queen is a nice lady, and I mean no disrespect to her when I ask this but, if she’s so dang powerful, why hasn’t she stopped my mother herself?”

“Because the Fae are the keepers of fate and destiny,” Rothatin answered with an agitated eye-roll, as if this were information she should already be privy to. “We do everything we can to guide those in our realm on the right path but in the end their decisions are ultimately their own. We cannot interfere. And even if we wanted to, Eranna’s iron fortress keeps us out.”

“The Fae’s only weakness is the element of iron,” Jake supplied from behind Rothatin’s hulking form. “Her fortress is surrounded by it.”

“Well, you just said yourself that you can’t force me,” Jocylene huffed. “So, do whatever you need to do to turn this ship around and take me home. Or, let me off here for all I care. I can find my own way back home.”

“That is foolish, as well as dangerous,” Wil said to her retreating back as she turned to make her way back across the deck. “Eranna will not stop sending her minions after you. Of all the princesses of Fallada, she fears her own daughters the most!”

She paused and turned, shooting a glance at the three men watching her walk away with expressions of horror, anger, and dismay on their faces. “In case your friend here didn’t tell you, I am more than capable of protecting myself and those kids in there. Send whoever you want; they won’t get far. Once Michael, Vincent, and Gracie wake up, I’m out of here whether you want to give me a ride home or not.”




Other Books In The Series:
Prequel: Beyond The Iron Gate (A Lost Kingdom of Fallada Novella)
Blurb: In the year 1845, before the mystical land of Fallada was separated from the realm of men forever, the two worlds coexisted in harmony. Man could mingle freely in the world of the Elves and Faeries at will and peace reigned. In the hills of Shropshire, England, just miles from the gate separating the village of Ludlow from the world of mystical creatures, farmer’s daughter Zara Wells longs for answers.
It is not only the golden hair that trail feet behind her, or the strange hue of her violet eyes that separates her from the other girls her village. There is something inside of her, something touched by magic that longs to know more about what lies on the other side of the gate. In Fallada, darkness has begun to spread. As the youngest and most beautiful girls of her village begin to disappear, Zara comes closer to discovering the true circumstances surrounding her birth. Little does she know, that the closer she comes to the answers she so desperately desires, the closer she will come to being ensnared in the dark queen’s web of growing treachery.
 
Purchase Links




Book 1: Daughter of the Red Dawn

Blurb: These are dark times in the land of Fallada, and I fear that they will only continue to grow darker. Only the return of those we’ve lost will even the score.
It will begin with first line of the prophecy, which foretells of a red sun over the desert sky…
--Adrah, Queen of the Fae



On the outside, seventeen year-old Selena McKinley is like any other teenage girl. Yet Selena has always felt as if she doesn’t belong and is counting the days to graduation and her freedom from the small town that makes her feel so out of place, when the arrival of a stranger turns her world upside down. Selena will learn just how different she is and the truth of where she comes from.
A lost princess, they call her, the catalyst for a war involving a world that Selena was taken from as a child. An evil queen obsessed with her own beauty with a plan to enslave the human race.…the notion seems so silly, yet Selena knows in her heart that it is true. Then there is Titus, the shape shifter whose blue eyes and claims of destiny hold her heart captive. Can Selena find the strength to do what she must while following her heart?
Purchase Links



About The Author:
Ever since she first read books like Chronicles of Narnia or Goosebumps, Alicia has been a lover of mind-bending fiction. Wherever imagination takes her, she is more than happy to call that place her home. The mother of two and wife to an Army sergeant loves chocolate, coffee, and of course good books. When not writing, you can usually find her with her nose in a book, shopping for shoes and fabulous jewelry, or spending time with her loving family.







Author Links:


Tuesday, 28 May 2013

Blog Tour and Review: Incenaga Series Book 1&2- Debbie Dee




Summary: For generations the Incenaga Witches have been forced to use their power to fulfill the wishes of others until they are drained of their magic and left to die. Desperate to protect his infant daughter - the last surviving witch - Emmeline’s father escapes with her to the forests where he vows to keep her hidden from the world and from the truth. 


Sixteen years later, Emmeline is discovered and finds herself in the grip of a traitor who will stop at nothing to get what he wants, even if it means abusing her power until she dies. As she fights to regain her freedom she is faced with a choice between a prince who offers a lifetime of security and a common gamekeeper who has no idea of her power, but offers his heart. 

But who can she trust when her power can be used against her?
Title: The Last Witch
Author: Debbie Dee
Pages: 246
Date Published: September 12, 2012
Publisher: Dolce Books
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the quote in exchange for and honest review.
I fell in love with this book from the moment I started to read it. Debbie Dee has created a scary but beautiful nation hell bent on the extinction of witches and even going to fight wars over it. But luckily we find out that there is one last witch. There is so much present in this novel but also just as much good. Everything keeps you begging for more. I also enjoyed the idea that the Incenaga witches harness their power from the fire, but it is also their greatest weakness. I found it very interesting how they can be controlled by looking into their shining eyes. This is just a great fantasy novel overall.
I loved how quickly Emmeline became socialized from only ever interacting with her father to becoming a princess. She was also so strong and brave to have went through what she did and not just give up. I did find Erick's secret rather predictable but it was still cute. Also I found Erick to be a very honourable character. I can't wait to see how their romance blossoms and what adversities they will have to overcome in the next instalment.
This is an awesome story for fantasy lovers. I can't wait to start on book two. If you love stories about witches, kingdoms and magic, then this is a great book for you topics up. 


Summary: As the last of the Incenaga Witches, Emmeline has been tortured and forced to use her power to kill. But unlike the Incenagas before her, she has survived. With her freedom restored, she should feel safe, invincible even. After all, she has the protection of Prince Erick’s army and a power strong enough to obliterate any enemy. Yet Emmeline lives in fear for the next person who will try to control her, and no one can seem to find the tyrant threatening to claim her. 


Until it’s too late. 

With everything on the line, and the enemy at her throat, will Emmeline be able to use her power like never before? Even if it kills her? 

In The Underground Witch, the second novel of the Incenaga Trilogy, Debbie Dee delivers enough adventure, heartbreak, and suspense to captivate readers at every turn.
Title: The Underground Witch
Author: Debbie Dee
Date Published: May 2, 2013
Publisher: Dolce Books
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.
I want to be honest, I love this cover better than book one but I enjoyed book one better overall. This was still a great read and despite it being more action packed it was a slower read for me. I did enjoy the pirate aspect of the story. I hope in book three we get a bit more romance. I know that Emmeline and Erick love each other but they haven't had any "love scenes" or even assumed "love scenes". I just want to hurry up and read book three. 
Emmeline hasn't changed since book one, she is still the perfect heroine, willing to sacrifice herself to save others. I can't wait to find out more about her powers. She needs to grow into them fully. I'm excited to see how Orida will complete her goal now. I am going to assume that she will become the next villain. O'fin is my new favourite character because much like our heroine, he is about as brave as they come, but I want to hear his story too!
The Underground Witch is another great read by Debbie Dee to add to your TBR lists. I would recommend this book to fantasy lovers. I am very excited for book three and to see where everything goes and ends up.

Author Bio

Debbie Dee recently moved to southern Idaho with her husband and three children where she is learning how to be a country girl in her favorite pair of blue heels. She adores fairy tales and happy endings, but secretly crushes on the bad guy now and then. 

As a dedicated musician who practices way too much, she never expected writing would sweep her off her feet until she jotted down a scene from a daydream, which turned into two scenes, which turned into a messy house and her first novel. Since then she hasn’t been able to let a day go by without writing. 

In addition to writing, she plays the piano, harp, violin, and gets in frequent fights with her cello. She loves to read and play board games - when she is winning. 

Links:

http://www.debbiedee.com/
https://www.facebook.com/debbiedeeauthor
https://twitter.com/_DebbieDee
http://amzn.com/B00CKSPVFY


Monday, 27 May 2013

Blog Tour Review and GIVEAWAY: The Earth is for Dancing- Lorca Damon


Summary: Sam is a fifteen-year-old drug orphan living with her custodial grandmother who is stricken with late-stage Alzheimer's. She struggles to fill the role of caregiver to her grandmother while keeping her little family a secret from the authorities who would send Gamma to a state facility and Sam to foster care. Just because her life isn't hard enough, there are still boys to have crushes on, essays to write for horrible English teachers, and a squad full of bullies to torment her on a daily basis.
Title: The Earth is for Dancing
Author: Lorca Damon
Pages: 258
Date published: June 9th, 2012
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.
OH MY GOD!! This is seriously one of the saddest books that I have ever read. I bawled through the last half of the book. I actually had to stop reading because the tears were blurring my vision so badly. I think that this book will really hit home for most readers because it deals with bullying and also Alzheimer's Disease. I think that most people have had experience with one or both of these issues or know someone who has. But this book was not just a tear jerker, it was a book that was filled with surprises both good and bad. Lorca Damon did liven the mood with humorous parts as well. If she continues to write books as beautiful as this one, she has gained a new fan/ stalker.
What can I say about Sam, other then she is the most selfless character that I have ever read about. Her story is both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. I work with the elderly so I know where she is coming from and can relate to her. She is just the perfect granddaughter and she has so much patience. Sam is just an amazing character all together. I am happy that everything for the most part worked out.
If you are a fan of contemporaries, then this is a book for you. I will definitely read more books by Lorca Damon because anyone who writes a story this moving is great in my books!



About this author:



Lorca is a teacher in a juvenile correctional facility, which is a tremendous influence on her writing. She writes the books that her students wish they could read.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, 26 May 2013

Blog Tour and Spotlight: The Dreams Series- J.J. DiBenedetto



Dream Student
What would you do if you could see other people’s dreams?  If you could watch their hidden fantasies and uncover their deepest, darkest secrets…without them ever knowing?
Sara Barnes is about to find out.  She thought that all she had to worry about was final exams, Christmas shopping and deciding whether she likes the cute freshman in the next dorm who’s got a crush on her.
But when she starts seeing dreams that aren’t hers, she learns more than she ever wanted to know about her friends, her classmates…and a strange, terrifying man whose dreams could get Sara killed.
“Dream Student” is the thrilling first instalment of the Dreams series.

Dream Doctor
“I didn’t expect to be woken up by someone I don’t know dreaming about killing somebody.  I thought I was done with that once and for all…”
But Sara’s not done with it.  As if adjusting to life as a newlywed and starting medical school weren’t difficult enough, she’s started seeing the dreams of everyone around her, again.  Before everything is said and done, those dreams might destroy Sara’s hopes of becoming a doctor, wreck her marriage and even end her life…
“Dream Doctor” is the thrilling second novel in the Dreams series.


Dream Child
"I would give anything to take this away from her.  I would gladly go back to having the nightmares myself – the very worst ones, the ones that had me waking up screaming in a pool of my own vomit – rather than see Lizzie go through this..."
As a resident at Children's Hospital, Sara can handle ninety hour workweeks, fighting to save her young patients from deadly childhood diseases.  But she's about to be faced with a challenge that all her training and experience haven't prepared her for: her four-year-old daughter has inherited her ability to see other people's dreams...
"Dream Child" is the suspenseful third novel in the "Dreams" series.


Dream Family
"Why is this so hard for me?  Why am I having so much trouble?  Why do I feel so helpless, so hopeless?  What the hell is wrong with me?"
After tangling with murders and mobsters, not to mention medical school and three years of residency, Sara thought she could handle anything.  And then the police show up without warning at her new office and arrest her for a crime she can't possibly have committed.  Sara's confidence, and her grip on reality, is shattered during one terrifying night in jail.
Now, the very dreams that have endangered her life and driven her to the edge of madness may be the only thing that can help Sara find herself again...
"Dream Family" is the powerful fourth novel in the "Dreams" series.











About the Books: 
Sara Barnes (later Sara Alderson, when she’s married) starts out in book 1 as an ordinary college student, until she learns she can see into other people’s dreams.  That’s the basic premise of the series.  The characters who appear in previous books, who also are important in book 4, are:

Sara herself
Brian Alderson – Sara’s husband
Betty & Howard Barnes – Sara’s parents
Helen and Ben Alderson – Brian’s parents
Lizzie Alderson – Sara’s oldest child, age 5 ½
Steffy and Ben Alderson – Sara’s twins, age 2
Laurie Kensington – Sara’s medical partner, previously her supervisor during Sara’s residency
Grace Sorrentino – a patient of Sara’s during her residency, age 8
Paul Sorrentino – Grace’s father.  Also a powerful mob boss, who Sara faced down at the end of the third book
Beth Rosewell – Sara’s best friend, dating back to college
Kat Wells – Sara’s godmother, Betty’s best friend
Rebecca Brownell – now 21 years old, she was the teenaged girl who Sara rescued from a killer at the end of the first book
Joseph Harkness – Sara’s friend from medical school, godfather to Lizzie
Mary Harkness – Joseph’s wife

Book One - 
In the first book, in the winter of 1989-90, Sara is a junior in college, planning on going to medical school.  She's a hard worker, shy, no boyfriend, and perfectly ordinary.  But she begins to have strange dreams.  She's not even a character in these dreams - she sees a strange, creepy man assaulting a teenaged girl, the same dream every night.  She doesn't know the man or the girl, but then she sees the girl's picture in the newspaper - she was raped and murdered, her body found on the side of the road.  That's when she realizes, the dreams were the killer's dreams, and she was seeing into his mind.  At the same time, Sara begins seeing other, random dreams of the people around her, friends and others in her dorm.
While this is going on, she's met a guy - a fellow student, Brian, whose dream she's also seen.  He was dreaming of her, and has a major crush on her, and Sara takes the initiative and goes for it with him.  Over the course of the book, her relationship with Brian gets very serious very quickly.  With the help of Brian, and also her roommate and best friend Beth, Sara plays detective, using the clues from her dreams, and old-fashioned legwork, to figure out who the killer is.  It turns out he's a former teacher at the college, Dr. Walters.  At the climax of the book, Sara and friends figure out where he lives, and go to his house.  There, they rescue another teenager who Dr. Walters is about to murder.  In a final confrontation with Dr. Walters, Sara and Brian are both injured, but Sara keeps Dr. Walters talking until the police arrive and arrest him, saving the day.  Six months later, Sara sees one last dream - Brian is dreaming about proposing to her.

Book Two - 
The second book opens up in the summer of 1991.  Sara has just started her first month of medical school, and she and Brian were just married a couple of months before.  Sara's dreams start up again, and she sees the dreams of several people in the medical school, all of whom are dreaming about the death of one of Sara's teachers, the very unpopular Dr. Morris.  Then that teacher becomes sick, and Sara is convinced he's being poisoned by one of the people dreaming about him.  
While trying to survive the rigors of medical school, Sara again has to play detective and figure out which one of the suspects is trying to kill him, and how.  In the end, Sara discovers that it's his secretary, Maureen Jackson, who's been having a long-term affair with Dr. Morris.  Sara confronts Maureen in Dr. Morris' hospital room, and in a desperate struggle, she manages to stop Maureen from finishing the job and killing her lover.  Several months later, with the dreams once again behind her, Sara gets good news - she's pregnant.

Book Three - 
The third book jumps ahead to the winter of 1996.  Sara finished medical school and now she's in her second year of residency at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.  Her daughter is about to turn four, and she's just given birth to twins a couple of months ago.  On a trip to Washington, DC for a medical conference, Sara and her very precocious daughter, Lizzie, run into the wife and son of her Congressman, and make fast friends with them.  That night, Sara learns that Lizzie shares her talent for dreaming - Lizzie sees the Congressman's son dreaming.  In the dream, the Congressman is being blackmailed by a "big, scary man with a big black car."  Over the course of the book, Sara investigates and discovers that the scary man is a powerful mob boss, Paul Sorrentino.  He's also the father of one of Sara's patients at the hospital. 

After some investigation, Sara learns that the mobster is blackmailing the Congressman in order to get a toxic incinerator built, bypassing all the rules and regulations that ought to prevent it.  In the end, Sara confronts the Congressman, and ends up punching him out before he can go back to Washington to carry out the mobster's orders.  She then confronts the mobster in his own house, and Sara forces him to back down, convincing him of all the innocent people that will be harmed or killed if the project goes forward.  Between her powerful argument, and the fact that she's been so forceful in standing up to him at the hospital when treating his daughter, the mobster is impressed by Sara and gives in to her demands.  The book ends a few days later with the revelation that it's not just Sara's daughter who can see dreams, but her mother learns she has the same talent.







Author Bio: 
J.J. (James) DiBenedetto was born in Yonkers, New York. He attended Case Western Reserve University, where as his classmates can attest, he was a complete nerd. Very little has changed since then.
He currently lives in Arlington, Virginia with his beautiful wife and their cat (who has thoroughly trained them both). When he's not writing, James works in the direct marketing field, enjoys the opera, photography and the New York Giants, among other interests.
The "Dreams" series is James' first published work.







Here are the links:
www.writingdreams.net (my blog)
www.facebook.com/james.dibenedetto/39
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Dream-Series/107699179403603 (FB fan page for the books)
www.amazon.com/author/jjdibenedetto
http://www.amazon.co.uk/J.J.-DiBenedetto/e/B00BW6L9GK/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_4?qid=1363742951&sr=8-4
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7006618.J_J_DiBenedetto
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/starkllr
http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Student-Dreams-J-J-DiBenedetto/dp/1482716275/ref=la_B00BW6L9GK_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1365715105&sr=1-4
http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Doctor-Dreams-J-J-DiBenedetto/dp/1482745542/ref=la_B00BW6L9GK_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1365715105&sr=1-3
http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Child-Dreams-J-J-DiBenedetto/dp/1482745569/ref=la_B00BW6L9GK_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1365715105&sr=1-2
http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Family-Dreams-J-J-DiBenedetto/dp/1482745593/ref=la_B00BW6L9GK_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365715105&sr=1-1

Saturday, 25 May 2013

Blog Tour and GIVEAWAY: The Forgotten Ones- Laura Howard



Title: The Forgotten Ones
Author: Laura Howard
Genre: New Adult Paranormal Romance
Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours


Summary: Allison O'Malley's plan is to go to grad school so she can get a good job and take care of her schizophrenic mother. She has carefully closed herself off from everything else, including a relationship with Ethan, who she's been in love with for as long as she can remember.


What is definitely not part of the plan is the return of her long-lost father, who claims he can bring Allison's mother back from the dark place her mind has gone. Allison doesn't trust her father, so why would she believe his stories about a long forgotten Irish people, the Tuatha de Danaan? But truths have a way of revealing themselves. Secrets will eventually surface. And Allison must learn to set aside her plan and work with her father if there is even a small chance it could restore her mother's sanity.

Excerpt: 

Sean jogged over with the bat and held it out for me, grinning. “Pick your pitcher, Allie-O.”

The smirk on Ethan's face was a challenge, and I couldn't resist. “Ethan has the ball, he can pitch to me.”

He made a big show of stretching and winding up before he finally tossed the ball at me.

I smacked the ball over the pool house, and Sean started shouting and cheering, making me smile. Ethan shook his head, but he was smiling. He clearly thought I would be an easy out.

I made it all the way to the final round, kicking Sean and Jeff out of the game. I'd played softball and run track all through school to pad my transcripts.

“You gonna let her win, E?” Jeff called, winking at me from the picnic table where he sat drinking a beer.

Ethan chuckled, showing off those damn dimples. He looked down at the ball in his hands and back up at me with a grin. “If I do, will you let me take you out?”

I snorted, trying to look braver than I felt. “Not a chance.”

“Wait a sec. I like this. Let's make a wager,” he said.

The guys were all hooting and hollering at me, my face was no doubt crimson.

“What do I get if I win?” I bit my lip, feeling all their eyes on me.

“I'm thinking, hang on,” He held up his finger, his brow furrowed in thought. His eyes widened with excitement, and I knew I would regret whatever he had to say.

“If I win, I get a kiss.” If it was possible, my cheeks grew even redder. They were all laughing and making cat calls now.

“And, if I win?” I looked up at his face.

He looked at me for a second, considering. “If you win, I won't ever ask you out again.”

This earned a chorus of “Yeah, right” and “No way” from the guys.

My mouth fell open, I had not been expecting that, but his face was sober. The laughing around us fell away for a second, and I could only stare at him feeling the color drain from my face. His expression remained solemn, and he met my gaze head on.

I nodded stiffly, and swallowed. “All right.”

His grin came back in full force. “Oh, and Al?”

I raised my eyebrows at him.

“I won't lose.”


Title: The Forgotten Ones
Author: Laura Howard
Pages: 177
Date Published: April 13th, 2013
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review. Firstly, I just have to say that I adore this cover. The model is gorgeous and the colours are perfect. This book starts off contemporary, then evolves into a fantasy read. Honestly I think that this book was so amazing because it could have stayed all contemporary or ended like it did and it still would have been great. It is like a chameleon, either way it would have been awesome. But Laura Howard decided to make it a fantasy and it worked! She has an exceptional imagination and an amazing way with words. I flew through this book, I had it finished in a few hours. It grabbed me and didn't let go, even for a minute.
I fell in love with these characters, all of them, even the evil ones. Laura Howard made it impossible not to love them all. There is still so much to learn about all of them, I need the how's and whys of everything ASAP! I found Allison to be very selfless because she would rather of stayed home to look after her mother then go out and party. I also found her very intriguing. I. Can't wait to watch her grow and mature in the next book. I feel like there will be a love triangle or two coming up and a ton more secrets!
This was a fast paced read with a cliffhanger. Reading the next book is a must. I would recommend this book to fantasy lovers.


Author Bio: 
Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.

Social Media Links: 



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friday, 24 May 2013

Review # 128: The Girl in the Wall- Daphne Benedis- Grab


Title: The Girl in the Wall
Author: Daphne Benedis- Grab
Pages: 256
Date Published: December 18, 2012
Publisher: Merit Press
Buy Links: Amazon.comKobo and Barnes and Noble
Rating:  4/5 Stars
Review: I received this book free from natgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The main reason that I had requested this book to read was because I fell in love with the cover. But once I read the summary I decided that the book would also be interesting lol. I would venture to say that this book reminded me of "The Panic Room", in some aspects. The Girl in the Wall was a very quick read because it was jam packed full of action and suspense. I enjoyed how this novel was told from two different perspectives, it helped the reader to get both sides of the story. Also I found it awesome how the suspense of who was behind the master plan was built- up to be one character but turns out to be someone that you would never have expected. The only issue that I had with this book was ( it might have just been my copy or the format) the numerous editing errors. I found that every sentence that started with a "th" word: these, the, this, etc... The "th" was missing. So try to get through a book when you have to fill in the blanks: "ese", "is", etc... So that was very annoying. Otherwise I liked this novel a lot.
I enjoyed reading about Sera and Ariel's past and present dramas. I can relate to having a fall-out with your best friend and later on reconciling. I'm glad that they could overcome their issues to help or try to help their friends and classmates. I wouldn't mind if their was another book so I could get more information on both girls before and then after this incident occurred. I want to see if they go back to being friends. Also there was a possible romance that budded, and I want to know if it will last. Or if it was something that happened because of a tragedy.
I would recommend this book to contemporary suspense lovers. And if you are a cover whore like me, this is a title that you need to add to your collection. I look forward to seeing if there will be another book, or just any other books that Daphne Benedis- Grab may decide to write in the future.


About this author (taken from http://www.daphnebg.com/about-me)


I grew up in a small town in New York State.  As a kid I loved marathon phone calls with my friends, horseback riding, watching football with my dad and losing myself in a good book.  I had dreams of being a football player and then a ballerina but my fear of getting tackled and my sensitive toes ultimately made it clear I wasn’t cut out for either. 
By middle school my insatiable appetite for books and overly active imagination lead me to a love of writing and I decided I would be a writer when I grew up.  I journaled daily and wrote long, dramatic sagas with my friend Lani in beat up notebooks that we would pass back and forth at lunch, each adding a new chapter at a time.  The sagas, or more accurately soap operas, featured a mix of our celebrity and real life crushes and always had deeply poignant and satisfying endings. 

But as I grew older other things took center stage and writing fell to the wayside.  I went to a boarding high school where I got to hang out with my friends all night instead of just talking on the phone.  I got sidetracked by a new found love of history when I went to college.  Then I spent my twenties teaching English in China, building houses for Habitat for Humanity in Georgia, being a waitress in Boston and working at a tutoring center in San Francisco.  I moved to New York City when I was twenty seven and knew I had found my home.  Finding my way back to writing took a little longer. 
I was in grad school studying religion when I randomly flipped through a book I’d liked and discovered that the author went to The New School.  That’s when things began to come together.  I got a catalog from The New School and when I saw that they had an Masters of Fine Arts concentration in writing for children, bells went off.  I knew the stories I wanted to tell were for teens and middle grade readers, and I applied to The New School.  I enrolled in their MFA program in 2006 and finally began to write again. 
My first book, Alive and Well in Prague, New York, was also my thesis for the New School.  It was inspired by my experiences when my dad was terminally ill with ALS and it came out in 2008.  After Prague I did a couple of writing for hire books under pen names and then started a project purely for fun, a thriller about a party taken hostage.  After many revisions that book became The Girl in the Wall and it is coming out in December 2012.  I’m pretty excited about that. 
Now I live in NYC with my husband, two kids and our doted upon cat.  I spend many of my days writing, always shooting for endings that are deeply poignant and satisfying, because sometimes the things that you figure out when you’re young are the truest things there are.