31 May 2013

In My Mailbox e-book Edition #17 + Weekly Wrap Up


In My Mailbox is a weekly bookish meme created by Kristi over at The Story Siren, and is now hosted by Gabrielle over at The Mod Podge Bookshelf. What you do is show off all the books you have gotten in the last week! :) Here are my books!

Im Not Her by Janet Gurtler
Synopsis: Tess is the exact opposite of her beautiful, athletic sister. And that’s okay. Kristina is the sporty one, Tess is the smart one, and they each have their place. Until Kristina is diagnosed with cancer. Suddenly Tess is the center of the popular crowd, everyone eager for updates. There are senior boys flirting with her. Yet the smiles of her picture-perfect family are cracking and her sister could be dying. Now Tess has to fill a new role: the strong one. Because if she doesn’t hold it together, who will?














Of Silver and Beasts by Trisha Wolfe
Synopsis: In the sand-covered queendom of Cavan, the goddess once saved a young Kaliope’s life, preventing the mercury her father attempted to hide in her blood from reaching her heart. Now, a cybernetic clamp filters it, but the silver streaks swirling faintly beneath her skin are a constant reminder that she’s different.

When nineteen-year-old Kaliope is chosen as head of the Nactue Guard, she becomes the sworn protector to her empress. In the midst of an invasion on a neighboring land, Kaliope is placed in charge of guarding Prince Caben, the last heir to his kingdom. But when they’re attacked by the feared Otherworlders, Caben and Kaliope are abducted and taken below to a realm where they must fight for their life in a caged arena. 

Kaliope struggles to protect her princely charge, keeping him and herself alive while battling inhumanly opponents, and trying to save the stolen, sacred relic that will restore her empress’s life force and all of Cavan. And if she can somehow awaken the goddess within her, she may save what’s most important.

New Adult Dark Fantasy: Intended for readers 17 years of age and older.


Escape From Eden by Elisa Nader
Synopsis: Since the age of ten, Mia has lived under the iron fist of the fundamentalist preacher who lured her mother away to join his fanatical family of followers. In Edenton, a supposed “Garden of Eden” deep in the South American jungle, everyone follows the Reverend’s strict but arbitrary rules—even the mandate of whom they can marry. Now sixteen, Mia dreams of slipping away from the armed guards who keep the faithful in, and the curious out. When the rebellious and sexy Gabriel, a new boy, arrives with his family, Mia sees a chance to escape. 

But the scandalous secrets the two discover beyond the compound’s façade are more shocking than anything they ever imagined. While Gabriel has his own terrible secrets, he and Mia bond together, more than friends and freedom fighters. But is there time to think of each other as they race to stop the Reverend’s paranoid plan to free his flock from the corrupt world? Can two teenagers crush a criminal mastermind? And who will die in the fight to save the ones they love from a madman who’s only concerned about his own secrets?





Confessions of an Almost Girlfriend by Louise Rozett
Synopsis: Rose Zarelli has big plans for sophomore year—everything is going to be different. This year, she’s going to be the talented singer with the killer voice, the fabulous girl with the fashionista best friend, the brainiac who refuses to let Jamie Forta jerk her around...

...but if she’s not careful, she’s also going to be the sister who misses the signals, the daughter who can only think about her own pain, the “good girl” who finds herself in mid-scandal again (because no good deed goes unpunished) and possibly worst of all...the almost-girlfriend.

When all else fails, stop looking for love and go find yourself.












The Rockin' Chair by Steven Manchester
Synopsis: Memories are the ultimate contradiction. They can warm us on our coldest days or they can freeze a loved one out of our lives forever. The McCarthy family has a trove of warm memories. Of innocent first kisses. Of sumptuous family meals. Of wondrous lessons learned at the foot of a rocking chair. But they also have had their share of icy ones. Of words that can never be unsaid. Of choices that can never be unmade. Of actions that can never be undone.

Following the death of his beloved wife, John McCarthy Grandpa John calls his family back home. It is time for them to face the memories they have made, both warm and cold. Only then can they move beyond them and into the future.

A rich portrait of a family at a crossroad, THE ROCKIN' CHAIR is Steven Manchester’s most heartfelt and emotionally engaging novel to date. If family matters to you, it is a story you must read.








Weekly Wrap Up:

Reviews:


Memes/Posts:


Blog Tours/Hops:

Giveaways: 


30 May 2013

First Tour: Guest Post + Giveaway


First by Chanda Stafford
Publisher: Red Adept Publishing
Release Date: May 13, 2013
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Mira works on a farm in the ruins of Texas, along with all of the other descendants of the defeated rebels. Though she’s given her heart to Tanner, their lives are not their own.


When Socrates, a powerful First, chooses Mira as his Second, she is thrust into the bewildering world of the rich and influential. Will, a servant assigned to assist her, whispers of rebellion, love, and of a darker fate than she’s ever imagined.



With time running out, Mira must decide whether to run to the boy she left behind, the boy who wants her to live, or the man who wants her dead.



Where to find the book:



Guest Post:

It Takes Three to Tango
by Chandra Stafford

Everyone knows the plot of the classic love story: Boy meets girl, they fall in love, then something happens and they break up. After great strife and hardship, the boy and the girl find each other once again, get back together, and live happily ever after.

Nowadays, its girl meets boy, falls instantly in love. Something happens, they break up, and girl meets boys arch-nemesis/older brother/identical twin/goat herding cousin. Of course, they fall in love too, only the girl doesn’t know the two boys are connected. Much havoc (and occasional hilarity) ensues when some calamity throws all three of them together and she’s forced to weigh the strengths and weaknesses of each guy against the other. Boy, wouldn’t it be nice if real life were like that? Two equally handsome, strong, talented young men fighting over you at the same time? It’d be many a girl’s dream.

By the end of the book (or series), the girl has to choose between the two young men. It’s often a heart- wrenching decision that leaves both the girl, and one of the young men, heartbroken and disillusioned with the world, but I have a solution for that dilemma. Wouldn’t it be so much easier if the author were to just kill one of the love interests off? He or she can make it tragic, if necessary, or quick, as in hit by a bus while crossing the street to the 7-Eleven on a balmy summer night. I’m sure the female main character would mourn the one who passed away, but think about it: If one of the love interests died, the girl would pick the one who lives because seriously, who wouldn’t pick theone with the pulse? It would certainly have made for a much shorter Twilight series.  Besides, I liked Jacob better, anyway.

My book, First, follows this pattern. The main character, Mira, is faced with two young men who care deeply about her. Tanner is the boy next door. She grew up with him, knows him, and was even supposed to marry him. Will is the more mysterious of the two. He knows things she doesn’t, keeps secrets from her, and is connected to the outside world in ways she can’t imagine.Through her experiences, she comes to learn about herself based on her interactions with the people in her society, including her love interestsBoth young men symbolize very different things to Mira. Tanner represents the world she leaves behind, her home and her family, while Will embodies a new, exciting, dangerous future.

Like all love triangle stories, Mira has to make a decision in the end between the two young men, although there are other factors that weigh heavily on her. It’s not all about the love, though that plays a big part. I’m not going to tell you who or what, she chooses. You’ll have to read the book, but I will tell you this:Mira doesn’t fall in love with anyone lacking a pulse.


Giveaway:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

I hope you all enjoyed the guest post along with a little about the book! This tour was put together by Red Adept Publishing so go check them out! 

29 May 2013

Live For You Tour: Guest Post + Giveaway


Good Morning everybody! Today Comfort Books is participating in the blog tour for Live For You by Marquita Valentine. The tour is hosted by AToMR Tours so be sure to check them out!

Live For You by Marquita Valentine
Release Date: May 29, 2013
Age Group: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Goodreads
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Itunes
Synopsis: 
On the surface, twenty-two year old Cole Morgan is exactly what any girl would be proud to take home to meet her parents: He’s charming, intensely handsome and goal-oriented...Only he has some secrets of his own, which include provoking bar fights and a former drug-addict of a mother slowly wasting away in a medical facility.

At barely twenty, Violet Lynn is Country Music's hottest star, until one night of partying gets out of control. Violet ends up in jail and on TMZ. Suddenly, she’s the girl least likely to be invited anywhere. Sick of the drama and keeping secrets, she runs away from the prying eyes of the paparazzi to her grandmother’s home in Forrestville, North Carolina.

A chance meeting knocks Cole off his feet, but he doesn’t recognize Violet for who she is. In fact no one does and Violet plans to keep it that way.

Circumstances, however annoying, keep throwing Violet and Cole together. Unable to stop themselves they give into the inevitable.

But when Nashville is ready to forgive and forget, Violet is forced to choose between Cole and claiming her spot as the new and improved Princess of Country Music.

Will Violet and Cole have the courage to live for their dreams...Or their hearts?



Meet The Author:
Nationally Bestselling Author, Marquita Valentine, writes small town romances that are anything but small. Lisa Kleypas, Carly Phillips and Rachel Gibson are her favorite contemporary authors. Marquita met her husband aka Hot Builder at Sonic when they were in high school. She suggests this location to all of her single friends in search of a good man -- and if that doesn't work, they can console themselves with cheesy tatertots. She lives in North Carolina in a very, very small town with Hot Builder and their two children.







Author Social Media Links:

Guest Post: 

Facts  about Live For You Part 2
By Marquita Valentine

1)

No one cheats in this book (except for the heroine’s ex)

2)

I’ve never written a love triangle type of book, so Live For You isn’t one of those either.

3)

Once I was told by the amazing Sabrina Jeffries that every writer has a core theme (with a couple of side themes thrown in) in throughout her books. Mine: 2ndchances with a dash forgiveness.

4)

The playlist for this book is eleventy-billion songs long. And much to Cole’s dismay, most of them are country. Heh.

5)

Only For You will be the conclusion to Cole and Violet’s story.


Giveaway:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

I hope you all enjoyed my stop on the tour! Don't forget to check out the rest of the tour here! 

28 May 2013

Cover Reveal: Steel Lily by Megan Curd

It's Monday! and Comfort Books is participating in the cover reveal for Steel Lily by Megan Curd. The cover reveal is brought to us by AToMR Tours so be sure to check them out as well :) Ready for the cover?!

Steel Lily by Megan Curd
Release Date: Fall 2013
Genre: Dystopian w/ hints of Steampunk
Age Group: YA
Synopsis: AVERY PIKE is a commodity. No, more than a commodity. Her existence is guarded at all costs.
She’s a water Elementalist, the strongest of her dwindling kind. She creates steam to provide energy to fuel Dome Three: the only thing standing between humanity and an earth ravaged by World War III. No steam, no Dome. No Dome, no life.
Or so she thinks.
That is, until a mysterious man offers her a way out of having to donate steam. A way to escape the corrupt government of Dome Three. While the offer seems too good to be true, Avery is intrigued.
But when she arrives to her new home, she realizes the grass isn’t any less dead on this side of the fence. Instead, the lies are just hidden better.
…Which means digging deeper.
When Avery enlists the help of her friends to uncover the truth, it may make her wonder if she was better off being a government tool than searching for freedom.
Some secrets are better left concealed, but humankind was never meant to live in a cage. And when you can control the most sought after resource, you can learn to control anything…including the fate of your world.

Meet The Author: 

Megan began her journey into writing as a college junior during winter finals at the encouragement of a friend. What resulted was Bridger, Megan's first full-length novel. Since then she has written the second book in the series, Traitor, and a stand-alone novel (which will hopefully become a series!) called The Guardian Chronicles: Forbidden.
When not writing, Megan enjoys spending time with her husband, son, and Great Dane, aptly named Dozer. She enjoys snowboarding, playing xBox, and crocheting. Music is a huge part of her life and drives her writing. Her favorite bands are Muse, Bon Iver, Florence + the Machine, and The Civil Wars.
Megan resides in Kentucky, near two of her writerly tweepsHope Collier and Beth Isaacs, and swears it's Hope's fault she's living in the land of the banjos, but wouldn't have it any other way.

So what do you guys think of the cover?! Let me know in the comments! 


27 May 2013

ARC Review: This Strange and Familiar Place by Rachel Carter

This Strange and Familiar Place by Rachel Carter
Publisher: Harper Teen
Release Date: July 2, 2013
Book Format: ARC
Number of Pages: 272
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


My Review:
I received This Strange and Familiar Place by Rachel Carter from Around the World ARC Tours and this is my honest review.

This Strange and Familiar Place is the sequel to Rachel’s first book So Close To You, about a girl named Lydia who is trying to figure out why certain family members keep disappearing and from there she discovers the crazy government under ground that time travels. So in the sequel it basically picks up where book one left off. Lydia is living at home but things are very different because when she went back in time she accidently changed the timeline of her life.

As you all know I love the whole time travel thing it totally fascinates me so I was so excited to get my hands on this ARC! I really like where this book goes, it is not slow in any parts it is full of I guess you would call it action. Lydia and Wes are always on the move from the beginning trying to solve the problem which is why did Lydia’s great grandfather disappear back in 1944. In the first book we get little glimpses of Wes and Lydia together but their relationship goes farther in this book which I love because I really like the two of them as whole because Wes is so like dark and hard and Lydia is so light and soft!

Lets talk about Wes’ character for a few minutes shall we? In this sequel we got to see a lot more of him which was great! But throughout the whole book he was very different. He was still dark and mysterious but he almost seemed to be like falling apart in the book. But I thought that was good almost because it gave Lydia the chance to jump up and be his rock. I think one of the reasons why I enjoyed this book so much was because we get to go back and see Wes’ past we get to see where he comes from which was great.

Carter’s writing is to die for! There were so many great descriptions in the book, I’m not going to quote anything because it is an ARC but there was this one part where she was describing the children that the project has kidnapped, and that paragraph was freaking awesome, I even read it aloud a few times when I saw it because I liked it so much. This book gets a 4 out of 5 stars, because it was great in so many ways!

View all my reviews


23 May 2013

Review: Once Upon A Gypsy Moon by Michael C. Hurley

Once Upon a Gypsy Moon: An Improbable Voyage and One Man's Yearning for Redemption by Michael C. Hurley
Publisher: Center Street Publishing
Release Date: April 16, 2013
Book Format: Hardcover
Number of Pages: 262
My Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Synopsis: Michael Hurley watched his world unravel in the wake of infidelity, divorce and failure. In August 2009, he was short of money, out of a job, and seeking to salvage a life that had foundered. Deeply in need of perspective, he took to the open seas in a 32-foot sailboat, Gypsy Moon. The story of his 2-year outward odyssey, deterred by rough weather and mechanical troubles, combines keen observation, poignant thoughts, and deeper introspection with glorious prose. 

Once Upon a Gypsy Moon also presents a rare and much-needed point of view on the familiar spiritual-journey narrative. It offers a star-crossed love story wrapped inside a rollicking good sea tale, but it also has something important to say to the reader about relationships, faith and disbelief, life and death, love and marriage, and what really matters.

My Review: 
I received Once Upon A Gypsy Moon by Michael Hurley, from the publisher for my honest review.

When I was contacted to review this book at first I was not just a little, but very hesitant about reading a memoir about a mans journey in life on the sea. But me being willing to give anything at least one shot, I agreed to review it and here I am writing a heartfelt review.

In the memoir we learn about the life of the author Michael Hurley. This was interesting because it was not just him whining about getting a divorce and being alone, but it was him telling us his story in a nice way. I liked that he admitted in the book that the reason for his divorce was because he cheated, he did not put any of the blame on his wife at all which is a step in the right direction, because that what I was expecting a whole spiel about why his wife is to blame but that’s not what happened and I enjoyed that.

The writing in this book was so great. I absolutely loved the descriptions of the sea like this one, “and the ocean was what any writer would feel compelled to describe as eerily calm--eerie like a murderer’s smile.” this one line had the ability to give me the chills unlike any horror book I have read (Hurley 30). Another thing I enjoyed about this book was the author’s mention of older writers like Thoreau, Mark Twain, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. All writers who I have studied and have works that I have loved!

Some of the chapters in the book were a bit boring but that’s to be expected especially in a book about a man’s journey to sea. It did not take the rating down much no more than a star. I liked the satisfaction of learning that Hurley does fall in love again after what seemed like an endless search it was a great edition to the book.

Overall it gets 4 out of 4 stars because the things I liked greatly overwhelmed the one thing I did not like. Even if you do not read memoirs I would recommend this because it happened to be a great story.


View all my reviews


22 May 2013

Waiting On Wednesday


Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly bookish meme created by Breaking The Spine, Every week we select books that we cannot wait for and feature them on our blogs! Here is my WoW!


a tale of two centuries by Rachel Harris 
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: August 6, 2013
Synopsis: Alessandra D’Angeli is in need of an adventure. Tired of her sixteenth-century life in Italy and homesick for her time-traveling cousin, Cat, who visited her for a magical week and dazzled her with tales of the future, Alessandra is lost. Until the stars hear her plea.


One mystical spell later, Alessandra appears on Cat’s Beverly Hills doorstep five hundred years in the future. Surrounded by confusing gadgets, scary transportation, and scandalous clothing, Less is hesitant to live the life of a twenty-first century teen…until she meets the infuriating—and infuriatingly handsome—surfer Austin Michaels. Austin challenges everything she believes in…and introduces her to a world filled with possibility.



With the clock ticking, Less knows she must live every moment of her modern life while she still can. But how will she return to the drab life of her past when the future is what holds everything she’s come to love?

Why am I waiting on this? I had the opportunity to read the first book in this series called My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century and it was absolutely amazing! I love time travel stories and I have to admit Lorenzo was pretty swoon worthy as well!  

19 May 2013

Author Interview: Thomas Amo


Forever Me by Thomas Amo
Publisher: Gothic Twist Publishing 
Release Date: October 11, 2012
Synopsis: Forever Me is considered YA and NA. 

Inspired by True Events

Hannah Richards isn't your typical 16 year-old at Wichita Falls High. Fashions, trends, cosmetics and style are unimportant to her. An avid reader, guitar player, classic movie and television buff, Hannah marches to the beat of her own drum. Visible only to her Father the town Sheriff, and her two best friends. Hannah lives a simple, un-pampered life as an "Eastie."

After coming to the aide of Taylor Monroe, a popular member of the ultra snobby "Stilettos" at school, Hannah's life beings spiraling out of control. As she starts spending more time with Taylor, her best friends abandon her, after a series of misunderstandings, causing Hannah to re-invent herself.

Hannah quickly gets caught up in a life much different than the one she knows, where status, glamour, makeup, appearance and acceptance become her masters. And what of the dark secret that haunts the streets of Wichita Falls?

Can Hannah survive the lies, deceit, jealousy and rage that are now waiting for her behind every corner? Will she succumb to the pressures of popularity? Or will she be crushed under the heels of the "Stilettos"?

~High school is hard enough just being yourself, let alone being someone you're not~


Meet The Author: 

Thomas Amo has been writing since he was a boy. His dream was always to write for the movies, television, theatre. In the late 1990's he began a career as a full time theatrical producer and while running his own theatre company began writing plays for the stage. In 2000 his first novel was published. It would be another decade before he published again. In August of 2012 he finished epic YA novel, "Forever Me." 


Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/AuthorThomasAmo
or connect with me on Skype: Jordanfilms







Author Interview:


P: How long have you wanted to be an author?
T: Since I was a boy. Around 1971 my mom took me to Disneyland and after going through the Haunted Mansion, I knew
I wanted to write scary stories! I fell in love with that ride and begged my mom to buy the record for me before we left the park.
I played that record until it was warped, scratched until you couldn't listen to it anymore without it skipping. I thought if I could
write a great haunted house story, maybe someone would buy my book and I could buy my mom a house. (The imagination of a boy.)
Since then I've never given up the dream to write.


P: Books about High School could go either way. What made you want to write that kind of story?
T: I was just about to leave the house one morning when I caught a segment on morning television about a group of teen girls at a Texas high school who had organized a group called, “Redefining Beautiful.” They were trying to encourage fellow female students to go one day a week without makeup. They were stressing that you don’t need makeup to be beautiful. I was so amazed by their bravery and confidence to go against type, especially in high school and at an age where girls feel the most awkward with themselves. A close friend of mine who is a film producer had been asking me if I had anything I was working on I could share with him. By time the segment was over, I had the basic plot in my head and before I left the house, I already knew the ending of the story. I phoned my producer friend and told him I had something, we met that afternoon and I pitched the idea to him as a film. He loved the concept and told me he was interested. Could I write the screenplay? I went to work right away. But about 50 pages in, I found these characters were so lifelike, I felt it needed to be a book, it could always be a film later. I called my friend back, said, I have to write this as a novel. With his blessing and two years later. Forever ME was published.

P: Whats your favorite genre?
T: To write: Comedy for the stage although writing "Forever ME" was the best experience I ever had as an author. 
To Read: True Crime.
P: I love True Crime! I'm thinking about going to pick up a few of them soon :)

*Speed Round*

P: Paper and pen or Laptop?
T: Laptop!

P: Female MC or Male MC?
T: Female MC! I think there's always so much more to a female MC.

P: Paperback or Hardcover?
T: Hardcover is always preferred!

I hope you all enjoyed the little spotlight on the book/author and the author interview! I had a great experience interviewing Thomas and learning about his book! 
 
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