Comfort Books

27 June 2013

Author Spotlight Thursday: Kelley Armstrong

Good morning bookies! It is time for another Author Spotlight Thursday and this week I am featuring! *Drum Roll Please!!!*

Kelley Armstrong!

Kelley happens to be one of my all time favorite authors because she has written some amazing books that I cannot get enough of!

Meet Kelley:

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers' dismay. All efforts to make her produce "normal" stories failed.

Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She's the author of the NYT-bestselling "Women of the Otherworld" paranormal suspense series and "Darkest Powers" young adult urban fantasy trilogy, as well as the Nadia Stafford crime series. Armstrong lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

Okay so first we need to discuss the first book I ever read by her which was one of the first YA books I ever read. This trilogy is phenomenal and I wish it never ended! I will share with you the first in this trilogy!

The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong

Release Date: July 1, 2008

Synopsis: My name is Chloe Saunders and my life will never be the same again.

All I wanted was to make friends, meet boys, and keep on being ordinary. I don't even know what that means anymore. It all started on the day that I saw my first ghost - and the ghost saw me.

Now there are ghosts everywhere and they won't leave me alone. To top it all off, I somehow got myself locked up in Lyle House, a "special home" for troubled teens. Yet the home isn't what it seems. Don't tell anyone, but I think there might be more to my housemates than meets the eye. The question is, whose side are they on? it's up to me to figure out the dangerous secrets behind Lyle House...before its skeletons come back to haunt me.

After the lovely trilogy above, Kelley did not leave us hanging because she is awesome! Not long after she had another YA trilogy up and running and yes this one is amazing as well! Here is the first book.

The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong

Release Date: April 12, 2011

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Maya is just an ordinary teen in an ordinary town. Sure, she doesn't know much about her background - the only thing she really has to cling to is an odd paw-print birthmark on her hip - but she never really put much thought into who her parents were or how she ended up with her adopted parents in this tiny medical-research community on Vancouver Island.

Until now.

Strange things have been happening in this claustrophobic town - from the mountain lions that have been approaching Maya to her best friend's hidden talent for "feeling" out people and situations, to the sexy new bad boy who makes Maya feel . . . . different. Combine that with a few unexplained deaths and a mystery involving Maya's biological parents and it's easy to suspect that this town might have more than its share of skeletons in its closet.

As a reminder The Rising which is the third book in the above trilogy came out this year and I cannot wait to get my hands on it!

Last but not least Kelley also writes lots of adult series! Here is her newest adult novel that has yet to come out!

Wild Justice by Kelley Armstrong

(No. 3 in the Nadia Stafford series)

Release Date: November 26, 2013

Synopsis: Protect the innocent. If there is any one principle that drives hit man Nadia Stafford, it’s this. In her own mind, when she was thirteen, she failed to protect her older cousin Amy from being murdered. Now she fails again, disastrously, when she botches a hit. To help her find her equilibrium, her mentor, Jack, brings her a gift: the location and new identity of the predator who killed her cousin and disappeared after the case against him failed.

Vengeance, justice? With the predator in her sights, nothing seems more right, more straightforward, more easy. But finding justice is never as simple as it seems.

I hope you all enjoyed the author spotlight on Kelley Armstrong! Let me know in the comments if you have read anything by her and what you thought, or if you are going to read something by her after checking out this post! :-)

26 June 2013

Tripped Up Love Tour: Excerpt + Giveaway

Tripped Up Love by Julie Farley
Publisher: Perfect Mamas Press
Release Date: May 8, 2013
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Synopsis: Heather Meadows lost the only love she’s ever known. Her perfect, yet ordinary life was turned upside down the day her 38-year-old husband died. Her happily ever after was gone in the blink of an eye. Heather’s life becomes the subject of scrutiny and pity as she tries to pick up the pieces of her shattered world and raise her three children on her own. In the midst of suburbia and gossipy neighbors, Heather tries to re-build a normal life. Little does she know she’s about to trip into a new adventure. An adventure she could never have imagined. Where will her misstep take her and how will Heather handle the prying eyes of those around her?
Find The Book:
Goodreads
Amazon

Meet The Author:

Julie Farley was born and raised on Long Island. Even though she now lives in Virginia, a piece of her heart still lives in New York. And there's one in Chicago and South Bend, IN home of her alma mater Notre Dame. When Julie's not writing she's teaching preschool or taking care of her own four children. Julie grew up with her nose in a book and her love of books turned into a love of writing as well. Julie published her first book, Tripped Up Love, in May of 2013. The sequel, The New Ever After, will be released in July of 2013.

Find the Author:

Website

Excerpt:

Heather was too tired to argue. She had a feeling she hadn’t had in a while. It felt relaxing to have someone else take charge of her life for a moment. And someone had finally hugged her. Even better, someone who looked like Peter. Heather had always had a thing for arm tattoos. Hank was a guy without a tattoo. It hadn’t mattered to her. Hank was about so much more than a tattoo. He was her home, her childhood, her life all packed into a 200 lb man. He was her everything. Hank had been part of her life for thirty-two years. He knew everything about her. When he died, he took so much of her with him. Things weren’t always perfect with them, but things were familiar. They had known each other since Mrs. Zarchy’s kindergarten class. He asked her to sleep over at his house when he was in first grade. He was her first love. She was his. There had been others in high school and college for both of them but just enough others to know they were all the other wanted. When he proposed to her in the lifeguard chair on the beach in September, a year and a half after they graduated from college, they both knew this was it. It was a relationship sealed in the bark of the old oak tree in front of the house her mom still lived in. A house and tree that were painful reminders of the current state of things.

But right now, this guy in a white t-shirt, well-worn skinny jeans and Doc Marten’s was going to buy her lunch and had rescued her from the turkey vultures and tennis moms who would have started swarming had he not stopped his car. He looked like the bad boy every girl dreamed of when her usually doting husband did something wrong. Like forgetting to put a Pull Up on your toddler before bedtime or leaving the half-gallon of organic milk in the car on a hot summer night. This guy, Peter, looked bad but seemed like he may have some shining armor in his closet.

Peter left before she could say anything. Heather called her mom, who was frantic and decided she would leave the boys at home and take Gracie to the store to buy dinner. She said they would come over later that afternoon.

Peter hopped in his car and ran over to his brother-in-law’s restaurant. He grabbed some iced tea, salad and sandwiches. Thankfully, Chris wasn’t there. Peter knew he was at a travel baseball tournament in Newport News with Peter’s nephew. Janie was at home with his niece.

He got back to Heather’s pretty quickly. Peter opened the food on the island. He carried a tea over to her.

“I have a chicken curry sandwich, garden salad and grilled cheese with tomato. What would you like?”

“Hmmmm… that’s easy. Obviously you went to Cafe Nouveau. I’ll have half of the chicken curry. It’s my favorite.” She decided not to mention she was a vegan. Or a fegan (fake vegan) as her best friend from high school not so lovingly called her. Heather happened to be a vegan who enjoyed a cheeseburger every once in a while and a good chicken curry.

Peter brought it over to her in the brown cardboard box it came in. Peter seated himself on the couch opposite Heather and ate the grilled cheese.

“Does your Mom take the kids often?”

“At least once a month. I like to have them here though. I’m not good about sharing them anymore. Hank’s mom likes to take them out when she can. But it gets too quiet without them. They have their friends here and usually don’t like to leave.”

“Do you run often?”

“As often as I can get away. I usually write better after I run - assuming I don’t fall in a pothole. But I guess that’s done for awhile.”

“You’ll be back at it before you know it. We’ll have to find other ways for you to workout.” We? What the hell was he doing? he thought to himself. He never said things like that.

We? Who the hell was this guy? thought Heather. After I ruined his day, he was brave enough to mention seeing me again.

“I can only imagine what I would do on another workout. Accidents and misfortune seem to follow me.”

“Yeah, I’ve only known you for a few hours, and I’ve picked up on that.”

“I have a stationary bike upstairs I can probably use to ensure my ass doesn’t get any fatter.”

“Don’t think you are in danger of that happening anytime soon.” Conversation was easy with Heather. He felt like he had known her all his life.

Heather hadn’t fallen into an easy conversation with anyone in the last year and a half much less a stranger of the male persuasion. It felt oddly familiar, and she was hoping she didn’t ruin it or over analyze it too much. She could hardly take her eyes off of him. She was having a hard time figuring him out. He was casually elegant, had at least two tattoos (she could only imagine what was covered), wore Doc Martens and drove a navy blue Lexus. He did not look like any of the men she knew in the area.

“Do you live nearby?” Heather asked.

“I actually have a loft downtown, but my sister lives out here. I dropped something off this morning and was on my way home.”

“Stuck in the 2-3-1-1-3. Lucky you.”

“It’s not so bad. Who knew I would get to experience so much of it today? I divide my time in a few different places. I have a place in Manhattan, and my family has a house in Maine.”

“Some of my favorite places.”

He said family, thought Heather. Did he mean his immediate family or his parents? He wasn’t wearing a ring, and she kind of doubted that a wife would love for him to be spending so much time with another woman.

“This is my home base though. The place where they send my mail.”

“I can’t thank you enough for getting me this sandwich. And for taking me to the doctor. Oh, and for picking me up off the pavement. Great first impression.”

“It was a first impression I am not likely to forget. I get the sense that life with you is always this memorable.”

Peter didn’t know the half of it. Heather had a knack for making waxing your eyebrows interesting. He hadn’t even met the kids yet.

“What are you writing?” asked Peter.

“A memoir. A love story of sorts. I just don’t get a lot of time to write lately.”

“Well, I would love to read it sometime. I guess I can wait till it’s published.”

“Ha! You’ll be waiting awhile then! Mom and the kids should be here soon. Why don’t you get on with your day? I’ve kept you long enough.”

“Only if you are sure you’ll be ok. I’ll be out here again to check in on you.”

Peter picked up all their lunch, made sure Heather had what she needed and left her with a quick tap on the shoulder. And for the first time in ages, Heather had a tiny smile in her heart.

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I hope you all enjoyed the little book spotlight, excerpt, and giveaway! Don't forget that this tour was hosted by Irresistible Reads, and if you want to check out the rest of the tour you can find that here. Let me know what you think of the book, and excerpt in the comments!

25 June 2013

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme where we share teasers from the books you're are currently reading. The meme is created and hosted by Should Be Reading

The Book:

Breaking Glass by Lisa Amowitz
Release Date: July 9, 2013
Synopsis: On the night seventeen-year-old Jeremy Glass winds up in the hospital with a broken leg and a blood alcohol level well above the legal limit, his secret crush, Susannah, disappears. When he begins receiving messages from her from beyond the grave, he's not sure whether they're real or if he's losing his grip on reality. Clue by clue, he gets closer to unraveling the mystery, and soon realizes he must discover the truth or become the next victim himself.

The Teaser:

"Jeremey. I'm not very good at this stuff, but, uh-but Pat Morgan called and told me that Ryan thinks you're extremely depressed. Maybe even suicidal." (Amowitz 98)

What do you guys think of the teaser? I'm loving this book so far! I might even be finished with it by the time your reading this. Don't forget to leave me links to your TT's in the comments :-)

24 June 2013

Cover Reveal: Nomad by JL Bryan

Good morning bookies! As you know it is Monday, and I know Monday's are tough but I have something that will make your monday so much better. I bet you want to know what it is right? I'll show you! Keep scrolling down! :-)

Nomad by JL Bryan

Cover Art By: PhatPuppy Art

Release Date: July 26, 2013

Synopsis:

They took everything: her family, her home, her childhood.

By the age of nineteen, Raven has spent most of her life in the sprawling slums of America, fighting as a rebel against the dictatorship. When the rebellion steals an experimental time-travel device, she travels back five decades to the year 2013. Her plan: assassinate the future dictator when he is still young and vulnerable, long before he comes to power. She must move fast to reshape history, because agents from her own time are on her trail, ready to execute her on sight.

Find the book:

Goodreads

Meet The Author:

J.L. Bryan studied English literature at the University of Georgia and at Oxford, with a focus on English Renaissance and Romantic literature. He also studied screenwriting at UCLA. He lives in Atlanta with his wife Christina, dogs Violet and Tiger Lily, and cats Shadow and Sue.

Find The Author:

So what did you guys think of the Cover Reveal?! Hosted by BB Book Tours Did it make your monday a little brighter? Let me know in the comments, Because it sure brightened mine up! Thanks for stopping by and come back later in the week for more exciting posts! :-)

23 June 2013

Mini Review Sunday: Swim by Jennifer Weiner

Swim by Jennifer Weiner
Publisher: Atria Books
Release Date: May 8, 2012
Book Format: e-book
Number of Pages: 48
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
Synopsis: The short story that inspired Jennifer Weiner’s forthcoming novel The Next Best Thing.Ruth has left her job writing for a hit television show for reasons she’d rather not discuss and is supplementing her increasingly dwindling savings with freelance writing projects—namely, helping anxious high school students craft a perfect college essay and lonely souls craft captivating online dating profiles. When she’s not working, she’s swimming—lap after lap at the local indoor pool, in a desperate attempt to wash away the sting of professional failure and heartbreak that she can’t seem to shake. It takes an unexpected client to show her that appearances can be deceiving, and that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is simply dive back in.

Mini Review:
I downloaded Swim by Jennifer Weiner on my e-reader and this is my honest review.

The reason I grabbed this short story is because I had been hearing great things about Weiner's writing and so when I saw this by her for free I swept it right up and read it in about an hour! I've been trying to get more into adult books and this short story makes me want to go read the ones I have right now.

In just 48 pages we meet the main character Ruth whom is a young writer. This is probably one of my favorite parts is that in the story she is an aspiring writer which is what I am as well. In the story though she has a small form of writers block I guess you could say so she takes a job helping teenagers start filling out college applications. I can connect to this as well because I am starting to look at colleges as well!

Jennifer Weiner did an amazing job pulling me in with just 48 pages and I can honestly say I am very excited to read the full length book that this story is based on!

22 June 2013

Review: The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding

The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: February 5, 2013
Book Format: e-ARC
Number of Pages: 352
Rating: 5 out of 5
Synopsis: Things I know about Reece Malcolm:

1. She graduated from New York University.
2. She lives in or near Los Angeles.
3. Since her first novel was released, she’s been on the New York Times bestseller list every week.
4. She likes strong coffee and bourbon.
5. She’s my mother.

Devan knows very little about Reece Malcolm, until the day her father dies and she’s shipped off to live with the mother she’s never met. All she has is a list of notebook entries that doesn’t add up to much.

L.A. offers a whole new world to Devan—a performing arts school allows her to pursue her passion for show choir and musicals, a new circle of friends helps to draw her out of her shell, and an intriguing boy opens up possibilities for her first love.

But then the Reece Malcolm list gets a surprising new entry. Now that Devan is so close to having it all, can she handle the possibility of losing everything?

My Review:

I received The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding from Netgalley and this is my honest review.

When I picked this one up I was definitely in the mood for a light contemporary and that is what I got! The Reece Malcolm List is about a girl named Devan who suddenly has to move in with her estranged mother when her father dies. So the book is basically about her getting to know the mother she never knew and it was really a sweet story.

A big part of the book was about theater because the man character Devan was a big theater geek. Normally the book being about something I’m not interested in would annoy me but I enjoyed how the author incorporated it into the novel. The way she did it you did not really need to be a theater geek to be able to enjoy the story which I loved. I also really liked how interested in her mother’s job Devan was. In the story her mother who shes basically just meeting is a writer and she thinks it’s so cool but she never says anything because she does not think it’s appropriate to talk about but either way I loved who interested she was.

Devan was such an enthusiastic character! When she moved to California she was there for less than a week it seemed and she had already made a million friends, and to top that off they were all theater geeks just like her. I enjoyed how she handled herself very well, she tried not to let out her emotions at first but by the end she really started to open up and let people in which is great I love when characters change for the better.

Through the whole book there was probably only one thing that annoyed me. When I was nearing the end I noticed that the author repeated words a lot. For example to show that someone was close to Devan she would say “he was standing close close close” to emphasize the closeness or something like that. But she did this so many times in so many scenes just with different words and it kind of got annoying after awhile, even though I did think it was kind of cute at first.

Other than all of that though I loved this book! The characters were amazing including Sai I could not get enough of him! I also really liked Brad he is definitely the kind of step dad I would want to have if it ever came down to that. In the end the book gets a solid 5 out of 5 stars for just being so great!