Book Blitz and Excerpt - Miss Fortune Cookie by Lauren Bjorkman

Miss Fortune Cookie by Lauren Bjorkman 

Release Date: November 13, 2012

Publisher Henry Holt and Co.
Links: Amazon / Goodreads

Summary: Meet Erin. Smart student, great daughter, better friend. Secretly the mastermind behind the popular advice blog Miss Fortune Cookie. Totally unaware that her carefully constructed life is about to get crazy.

It all begins when her ex-best friend sends her a letter to her blog - and then acts on her advice. Erin's efforts to undo the mess will plunge her into adventure, minor felonies, and possibly her very first romance. 

What's a likely fortune for someone no longer completely in control of her fate? Hopefully nothing like: You will become a crispy noodle in the salad of life.

Book Excerpt:

Video Review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Evolution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer #2) by Michelle Hodkin
Release Date: October 23, 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Source: Personal Copy
Links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Goodreads

My Rating: 4.5 stars (Goodreads Rating: 5 out of 5 stars)

Book Synopsis: 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?

So, I had a bit of a problem. I wasn't supposed to read this book until later on this month but it been beckoning for me to read, so one I picked it up, I read this in two days. Now, the only problem was that I had no idea how to write this review. I had no way to putting words together that would make sense and so I decided to have my friends join me in reviewing the book. And so, we recorded ourselves talking and flailing and swooning over The Evolution of Mara Dyer.

Beware: There will be lots of swooning and fangirling and giggling.

Part 1- The One Where We Fangirl all over the book

Part 2- The One Where We Discuss Mara and Noah

I hope you guys enjoyed our little discussion. I know we had a lot of fun. I do want to thanks Nahomi and Daisel for putting up with me and my last minute ideas and whims. Love you guys!

Swoon Thursday

A weekly meme from YA Bound.

From the book you're currently reading, or one you just finished, tell us what made you SWOON. What  got your heart pounding, your skin tingling, and your stomach fluttering.

Shout it out on Twitter with the hashtag #YABound, post it here in the comments, or grab the adorable button above and share it on your blog. The awesome girls over YA Bound and I want to know!

Hi lovelies, I decided to try this meme today and if I like it enough, I'll continue doing this weekly. Here's what I'm swooning over this week:

The Evolution of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer #2) by Michelle Hodkin.

"Fuck seventeen." His eyes and voice were defiant. "If I were to live a thousand years, I would belong to you for all of them. If I were to live a thousand lives, I would want to make you mine in each one."

I mean, seriously? If that doesn't make you run to your nearest book store and pick up a copy of The Evolution, then I don't know what I did wrong. But do stop by tomorrow to see my review of The Evolution of Mara Dyer. It definitely something you haven't seen yet.

What has you swooning?

Mini Review: Thin Ice by Brighton Walsh

Thin Ice (Corporate Affairs Anthology) by Brighton Walsh
Release Date: October 1, 2012
Publisher: Xcite Books
Source: Personal Copy
Links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Goodreads

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Synopsis: After having been a sports reporter for more than a decade, Alex has worked with nearly every cocky, drop-dead gorgeous athlete, and is immune to their advances. Or so she thought. When Gavin walks in for his interview and quickly sweeps her off her feet, she's taken off guard, caught up in his charm and charisma. But even after a night of undeniable passion, Alex is left with a sinking feeling in her gut and a guilty conscience. Can she come to grips with mixing business and pleasure before Gavin's out of her life for good?

Hot hockey player + sweet charmer + dirty talker = one hot hero named Gavin. This novella was everything I was looking for in my smutty read.

A fun, fluffly read with a heroine who is strong and sassy and a hero who's hot, masculine and just plain UNFy. My only problem with this story is that it's not a full length novel. I would have loved to learn more about these two and see where their story would take them.

Sigh. I loved this novella.

Blog Tour Stop: Review + Giveaway: Defy the Stars by Stephanie Parent

Defy the Stars by Stephanie Parent 

Release Date: July 30, 2012
Publisher: Stephanie Parent
Source: Gifted by author
Links: Amazon / Goodreads

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Synopsis: Julia Cape: A dedicated classical piano student just trying to get through her last semester of high school while waiting to hear from music conservatories.

Reed MacAllister: A slacker more likely to be found by the stoners' tree than in class...

Julia and Reed might have graduated high school without ever speaking to each other...until, during a class discussion of Romeo and Juliet, Julia scoffs at the play's theme of love of first sight, and Reed responds by arguing that feelings don't always have to make sense. Julia tries to shake off Reed's comment and forget about this boy who hangs with the stoner crowd - and who happens to have breathtaking blue eyes - but fate seems to bring the two together again and again. After they share an impulsive, passionate kiss, neither one can deny the chemistry between them. Yet as Julia gets closer to Reed, she also finds herself drawn into his dark world of drugs and violence. Then a horrific tragedy forces Julia's and Reed's families even further apart...and Julia must decide whether she's willing to give up everything for love.

Defy the Star is written in an edgy free-verse style that will appeal to fans of Ellen Hopkins and Lisa Schroeder; however, the writing is accessible enough to speak to non-verse fans as well. The novel's combination of steamy romance and raw emotion will appeal to fans of Gayle Forman, Simone Elkeles, Jennifer Echols, and Tammara Webber. With a story, language and forma that both pay homage to and subvert Shakespeare's play, Defy the Stars is much more than just another Romeo and Juliet story.

As I first started reading, I found myself clicking with the protagonist, Julia. Julia is the good girl who always seems to do what she's told and doesn't question her parent's choices for her. The only thing she's passionate about is the piano and she spends the majority of her time either playing it or inside her own head. I felt some sort of a camaraderie with her and I was things to go right for her and I became her biggest cheerleader. When she meets Reed, I was so excited. Good girl meets bad boy and they fall in love is such a cliche story line, but I love it. Reed is a dark, broody and mysterious guy but he and Julia seems to have this spark that just pull them together.

Now I don't want to spoil what happens but after one night between Julian and Reed, my views of them started to change. I became really disappointed in them and while I tried to keep and open mind, I just expected more from Julia. She transform to this completely different person, she became a whiny, rebellious, crazy mood swings person after always being a smart, rational girl. I also expected a lot from Reed as well, he should have told Julia the first time and for what happens in the end? I was as angry as Julia was. He should have fought for himself and like Julia said "...but you should have tried anyways."

As these changes happened and I tried to put my grown-up wisdom aside, I realize what it was that the author was trying to do. Julia was this adult-like teenager that when she fell in love and started doing things out her norm, she changed. Julia had to trip, fall, and make mistakes so that she would learn for herself and come out stronger. The author created characters where you can see the changes they went through and that it was necessary for them to grow. So I have to give Ms. Parent her credit for creating such a wonderful tragic love story.

Link to tour schedule: http://yabound.blogspot.com/2012/09/blog-tour-schedule-defy-stars-by.html

Giveaway Info:

1st prize: $30 gift card from Amazon and an e-book copy of Defy the Stars.

2nd place: 4 e-book copies of Defy the Stars.

Additional Prize: A query letter critique by Stephanie Parent.

All giveaways are open internationally!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author:
Stephanie Parent is a YA author repped by Brenda Bowen of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. She is a graduate of the Master of Professional Writing Program at USC and attended the Baltimore School for the Arts as a piano major.
Contact: Website

Review: Rockoholic by C.J. Skuse

Rockoholic by C.J. Skuse
Release Date: November 1, 2012
Publisher: Scholastic
Source: Scholastic through NetGalley
Links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Goodreads

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Book Synopsis:  She's got it bad, and he ain't good - he's in her garage?
"I'm your biggest fan, I'll follow you until you love me..."
Gonna have to face it: Jody's addicted to Jackson Gatlin, frontman of The Regulators, and after her best bud Mac score tickets, she's front and center at his sold-out concert. But when she gets mashed in the moshpit and bodysurfs backstage, she's got more than a mild concussion to deal with. By the next morning, the strung-out rock star is coming down in her garage. Jody - oops - kind of kidnapped him. By accident. With a Curly Wurly candy bar. And now he doesn't want to leave.It's a rock-star abduction worthy of an MTV reality series...but who got punk'd?!

         Now, I'm a fangirl at heart so I was very excited about starting this book. Accidentally kidnapping your celebrity crush + the funnies it bound to ensues = excitement in starting this book! However right from the beginning, Jody, the main character, was a bit too much for me to handle. I understood her devotion to Jackson Gatlin and The Regulators but what she continues to do with and for Jackson, and how she treats Mac (the best friend) really bothered me.

I will admit that Jody starts off as a really immature, irritating and weak girl but she grows into this strong, mature person. She gets her act together by the end of the book but by then it was just too late for me. I just couldn't muster up any sympathy for her. She made Mac believe she was leaving with Jackson until she knew how Mac really felt. She continue acting really petty and was lying until the last possible moment and it became the last straw for me with Jody. I had hoped she would have redeemed herself earlier in the story but it just didn't happen.

Jackson Gatlin, what can I say about Jackson Gatlin? Well, he certainly left a lot to be desired. He was just one big hot mess of a human being and who need a lot more help. I think even some therapy would do him some good.

My favorite character of the whole book is Mac's little sister, Cree. She is super cute and adorable. I totally loved it when Jody would call Mac "Mackenzie" and Cree would be like "No, my Kenzie." So territorial over her big brother, she was so endearing.

I found the book to be a little unrealistic with Jackson's detox, it happened way too fast for me to consider it realistic. And the problem with the reporter, Sally Dinkley, and her causing trouble for Jody and Jackson feels like extra conflict just for the sake of word count.

I thought the book was enjoyable, a little far-fetched at times, but the concept was really fun but since I couldn't click Jody, I can't give this book a higher rating.

Review: Human.4 by Mike A. Lancaster

Human.4 (Point 4 #1) by Mike A. Lancaster
Release Date: March 8, 2011
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Source: Library Hardcover
Links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Goodreads

My Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars (2 stars on Goodreads)

Synopsis: Kyle Straker volunteered to be hypnotized at the annual community talent show, expecting the same old lame amateur acts. But when he wakes up, his world will never be the same. Televisions and computers no longer work, but a strange language streams across their screens. Everyone's behaving oddly. It's as if Kyle doesn't exist.

Is this nightmare a result of the hypnosis? Will Kyle wake up with a snap of fingers to roars of laughter? Or is this something much more sinister?

Narrated on a set of found cassette tapes at an unspecified point in the future, Human.4 is an absolutely chilling look at technology gone too far.

         I'm not sure how I feel about this book, I know I wanted to like it but I just couldn't find it in me to care. Its concept is very unique and intriguing but there was something about it that I just didn't love. I found myself reading and just not connecting with the main character and not caring what might happen to him.

I also had a bit of trouble with the writing. The author kept using the same phrase and way of explaining things. Like "her voice dripped of sarcasm." "...she said, her voice sounding patronizing." I didn't like being told the same things over and over again. After a while you start picking up on the way characters speak and say things and the way the author wrote it kept pulling me out of the story.

The second of the series is set to be release in November but I have to admit that I'm not in a that crazy zone that I-HAVE-TO-WHAT-HAPPENS-NEXT. I-NEED-THAT-BOOK-NOW. You know? Like there are some series that I'm counting down the days for its next book, but this one? Not so much.

Cover Reveal - Rouge by Leigh Talbert Moore

Morning lovelies, today I have the cover for Rouge by Leigh Talbert Moore. Awesome cover, right? This is Moore's second novel and it is slated to be release in late November. Her first novel, The Truth About Faking was release in September. Be sure to check out my review, which is right underneath this post.
Link:  Goodreads

Book Synopsis:Trapped in the underground theater world of 1890s New Orleans, Hale Ferrer has only one goal: escape. But not without Teeny, the orphan-girl she rescued from the streets and promised to protect.

Freddie Lovel, Hale's wealthy Parisian suitor, seems to be the easy solution. If only his touch could arouse her interest like Beau's, the penniless stagehand who captures her heart.

Denying her fears, Hale is posed to choose love until an evil lurking in their cabaret-home launches a chain of events that could cost her everything.
(Mature YA/light historical/theater romance)

About the author: Wife and mom by day, writer by day, editor by day, reader when time permits, chocoholic, lover of contemporary romance, lover of YA, lover of great books, beach bum, occasionally I sleep.

THE TRUTH ABOUT FAKING is my debut young adult romance. It's just a light, happy book with a hot and little message tucked inside.
ROUGE, my next mature-YA/New Adult romance, will be out mid-Nov 2012. It's neither light nor happy, but it does have a hot guy. And a cabaret...
Contact: Website / Twitter

Review: The Truth About Faking by Leigh Talbert Moore

The Truth About Faking by Leigh Talbert Moore
Release Date: September 1, 2012
Publisher: Self-Published
Source: Gifted by Author
Links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Goodreads

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Synopsis:Jason just wants a date with Harley.
Harley just wants a date with Trent.
Trent's still getting over Stephanie.

When Harley and Jason decide to fake date, they uncover a school of deceptions. Trent's got a secret, but so does Jason. And the more time Harley spends secretly kissing her fake boyfriend, the further she gets from her dreams with Trent.

Worst of all, Harley's mom is getting cozy with her hot massage therapy student, and even Harley's Reverend Dad can't fake not being bothered by it. But when the masks finally come off, can everyone handle the truth?

         This book is the epitome of Young Adult with some teenage love, angst, and some drama thrown in for good measure. It was a really nice and fluffy read. Harley is a girly-girl who is really innocent and naive but sometimes her naivete really exasperated me. From the synopsis, we know that Harley and Jason, the new guy in town, start fake dating and after awhile the way Harley treated Jason really bothered me. She would let him him kiss her and then turn around and tell him it didn't mean anything. She wouldn't care that she was sending him mixed messages.

There were also so many times when I wanted Harley to stand up for herself. To stand her ground against Shelly (the best friend), Trent, and her mom. She should have told Shelly how she felt about her dating Trent and Jason right from the beginning. She should have made Trent listen to her and she should have spoken to her mother early on about how she was feeling.

I found Jason to be a cute, fun, flirty, and typical teenage boy. I thought he was a good influence for Harley. He made her realize what she actually wanted and needed. He goes after what he wants and he did it in a really good, convincing way. I was totally rooting for Jason the whole time. I actually like him more than I did with Harley.

What I love about this story is that Harley's parents are involve, active parents. They may be caught up in their own lives' and drama but they're not absentee parents that is normally typical of Young Adults book.

For it being Ms. Moore's debut novel, I found this to be an entertaining read and I'm really looking forward to reading more of her work.

Book Spotlight - The Chupacabra by Stephen Randel

Chupacabra: A Borderline Crazy Tale of Coyotes, Cash & Cartels by Stephen Randel

Release Date: August 19, 2012

Publisher: Knuckleball Press

Genre: Dark Comedy

Pages: 233

Link: Amazon / Goodreads

Synopsis: He is called El Baquero. He makes his trades along the border, smuggling guns and killing without remorse. As he faces his one last mission, his perfect plan is unwittingly foiled by Avery, a paranoid loner obsessed with global conspiracy theories who spends most of his time crafting absurd and threatening letters to anyone who offends him. That means pretty much everyone.

What unfolds is a laugh out loud dark comedy of madcap adventure strecting from Austin to the West Texas border featuring a lunatic band of civilian border militia, a group of bingo-crazed elderly ladies (one packing a pistol nearly as long as her arm), a murderous and double-crossing cartel boss, a burned-out hippy, a crotchety retired doctor and his pugnacious French bulldog. Read it to believe it.

About the author: Stephen Randel, CFA, was born in Houston, Texas. He is a graduate of Texas Christian University. Steve now lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with his wife and their two rescue dogs.