Review: Deadly Crush by Ashley Stoyanoff

Deadly Crush (Deadly Trilogy #1)

by Ashley Stoyanoff

Genre: YA PNR

Published: August 23rd 2013

Synopsis:

Dog Mountain is just like any other small town — peaceful and uneventful. Well, that is if peaceful means wolves howling all night, and uneventful means it’s overrun by pesky werewolves, then yes, Dog Mountain is just your average small town.

Jade Shaw has spent the last two years avoiding the pack. But when Aidan Collins moves to town, avoiding the dogs doesn’t seem possible. The pack wants him just as much as she does.

Determined to keep him out of the pack’s grasp, Jade does everything she can to gain his attention. Little does she know, Aidan is in deeper with the pack than she could have imagined, and competing for his attention is a deadly game, one she may not want to win.

The e-book is FREE both on Amazon and B&N at the moment

My Thoughts:

5 super stars!

WOW!

This isn't news: I absolutely love Ashley Stoyanoff's books and I venture to say that this one is my favorite so far. Almost unbelievable considering it's about werewolves but yes, I loved it.

I believe that Ashley's writing got even better. As I said, I loved her previous books but in this one the writing simply flows, I advanced in the book effortlessly because the pace is fast so you can't get bored. But at the same time there is a very good scene description, thorough.

The take on werewolves is original, not only for werewolves being known and treated almost like royalty in Dog Mountain but also I enjoyed the dynamics of the pack. 

At first I thought it was just a regular pnr but no no no!

There is an intriguing plot behind it. I couldn't stop reading because I wanted to discover the truth behind that carefully crafted web of lies.

Moreover, I felt that this time all the characters were well defined and there personalities, nicely built.

Regarding our MC Jade... First of all, I found her name hard to pronounce lol. (maybe is my Argentinian tongue that get twisted but try to say Jade Shaw a few times in a row). Anyway... at first I thought she was awesome: strong, determined, self-confident and somewhat wild but as I kept turning the pages I realized she is plain annoying. She contradicts herself all the time, she is childish and I don't really get what's up with Dom. (yeah, yeah, there was an explanation but I feel like there is more to it)

Dom is great. I wasn't expecting that 'bomb' after Aidan confronted him regarding Jade but that added more to his mystery. I believe he is faithful, a great friend (even after some mishaps) and I want to read more about him.

Marcy is cheerful, energetic and she creates a bright side into a story that is to some extent dark. 

Aidan is a hottie, like every male character that Ashley creates. He is cryptic but I like it. I know there is a lot more to learn about him, specially about his past. He is the Colton Hayes kind of sexy. 

Jade's father and mother... wackos... I want to unfold that mystery ASAP.

That being said... I'll be getting my paws on book 2 really soon.

Review: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Shiver ( The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1)

by Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: YA paranormal romance

SYNOPSIS:

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without.

Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever. 

 

  My review:

3.5 stars

What a good book! 

I decided to read it because almost everyone in my GR friend's list has read it and loved it. So I said: 'Why not?' I wanted to know if it was thaaaaaat good...

The story line is compelling, simple but captivating. The writing is awesome and smooth. 

Typically, when everything is so simple it puts me off, but not here. Yes. I admit the beginning was slow and it took me longer than usual to get through it but at some point, I don't know exactly how or when, I was sucked in the story. The whole book is good but the second half is outstanding.

The characters are lovable and well developed. I felt this all the time and not only because the story is told from different perspectives. No. You can feel the connection between Grace and Sam. Even when Sam is a wolf.

Honestly that may sound weird and it's a bit creepy if you think about it rationally but it works, and you do perceive what's growing inside them. And the truth is, that it is a beautiful and innocent feeling.  

Another thing I really liked is that the author achieved depth in every character and not only in the main ones: Grace, Sam, Olivia, Beck, Jack, Shelby and my personal favorite, Isabel.

Also, a positive thing to highlight is that the plot is somehow different, the take on werewolves is unique. Who doesn't like a bit of originality?

I know this is one of my first werewolves books (I mean purely about werewolves) but I have to say that it changed my mind about them.

It is by no means perfect but it is a very good book that made me want to continue the series. 

About the author:

And for those who love to know a bit about their favorite authors, here you can watch a hilarious interview that Maggie did for Goodreads.

She is super funny and now that I think of it... chuckle is an awful word indeed! Lol. I'm with you in that one Maggie!

Cover Reveal: Deadly Pack

Ashley Stoyanoff is thrilled to release the cover of Deadly Pack, the final book in her young adult paranormal romance trilogy, the Deadly Trilogy, which is set to release on September 27, 2014.

Add it to your TBR shelf on Goodreads!

Book Description:

Since becoming the alpha female of the Dog Mountain pack, Jade certainly has had her share of challenges.  She’s had to prove herself to a bunch of werewolves that she spent years hating; forgive her mate who’d done nothing but lie to her, and face the grueling fact that her father leads a pack of werecougars, who are responsible for tormenting her werewolves for many years.

On the upside, the Dog Mountain pack is finally coming together—now that Jade and Aidan’s mate status is official.  And now that they know where her father’s been hiding his nasty pack of beasts, Jade and Aidan can concentrate on stopping them once and for all.

But when Jade’s dad finds out that she’s become Aidan’s official mate, all hell breaks loose, and Jade and Aidan soon learn that his plans for their werewolves are bigger than anyone could have ever suspected.

Add it to your TBR shelf on Goodreads!

About Ashley Stoyanoff

Ashley Stoyanoff is an author of paranormal romance books for young adults, including The Soul's Mark series and the Deadly Trilogy.  She lives in Southern Ontario with her husband, Jordan, and two cats: Tanzy and Trinity.

In July 2012, Ashley published her first novel, The Soul’s Mark: FOUND, and shortly thereafter, she was honored with The Royal Dragonfly Book Award for both young adult and newbie fiction categories.

An avid reader, Ashley enjoys anything with a bit of romance and a paranormal twist.  When she’s not writing or devouring her latest read, she can be found spending time with her family, watching cheesy chick flicks or buying far too many clothes.

Connect with Ashley online:

Website | Facebook | Goodreads

Vampire Lies: Interview and giveaway

Vampire Lies by RaShelle Workman 

(Blood and Snow S2, #1) 

Publication date: April 19th 2014

Synopsis:

Genre: YA Fractured Fairytale
Blood and Snow Season 2
Book 1 ~ Vampire Lies

*** Eyes like violet sapphires. Wings of smoldering fire. Consume your true love’s blood. Become the Eternal Vampire. ***

Once upon a time there lived a vampire with wings and the genie who loved her…

Born of the seven magics, Jasmine is different in every way, including the obnoxious wings on her back courtesy of the original Vampires. She wants to be normal, to be a regular teenaged girl.

When a gorgeous dark-haired boy named Laeddin shows up and promises to sneak her away from all her problems and hide her in the human world, she agrees.

But an evil lurks in her nightmares, a man with red eyes. It doesn’t take long for Jasmine to realize that no matter how far she tries to run from who she is, he’s only a dream away. He wants her. He needs her. He acts as though he loves her.

It’s becoming harder and harder to tell the difference between the path that’ll lead to her happily ever after, and the path that’ll lead to her destruction as well as all magic.

QUICK INTERVIEW 

with Rashelle Workman

Guilty pleasures? Orange is the New Black (on Netflix). The writing in that show is just so amazing.

Best reward as a writer? Creating a world, sharing it, and having readers get it. It’s awesome.

Do you like singing or dancing? I love singing and dancing although I’m not very good at either.

Does music inspire you? Music is a must have when I write. Some music I listened to while writing Vampire Lies was the soundtrack from How to Train Your Dragon.

What are your favorite TV shows? Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Arrow, Drop Dead Diva… there’s a bunch more.

Favorite movies? Right now, my favorite movie is the Edge of Tomorrow. That movie was awesome.

Do you have a nice relationship with your fans? I love my fans. They are amazing. 

AUTHOR BIO

RaShelle Workman is the international bestselling author of the Dead Roses series (“Sleeping Roses,” book 1 in the series, has been translated into Turkish and is NOW available wherever Turkish books are sold), the Immortal Essence series, the Blood and Snow series, the Cindy Chronicles, and Touching Melody (A Forever First Novel). She’s sold over five hundred thousand copies of her novels worldwide. You can find RaShelle all over the web, but the best place to start is on her blog: rashelleworkman.com.

Author links:

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

Giveaway:

15$ Amazon/B&N gift card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Shattering Halo: Giveaway and super cute guest post

Shattering Halos by Sunniva Dee 

(Halos #1) 

Publication date: February 24th 2014

Genres: New Adult, Paranormal

Synopsis:

I traded my death for love. I wasn’t given a choice. His decision has caught up with us, so now I am a living, breathing catalyst to war between Heaven and Hell.

The violations he committed saved my life. Since the collision, he’s appeared everywhere. In my hospital room, my school, even my house. He shows up in my paintings, my drawings, in all of my art projects. I can’t stop thinking about him.

He says his name is Gabriel, and he doesn’t understand what’s happening to him. He doesn’t know how I can see him or why he wants me in ways that should be impossible for a Celestial.

My obsession grows. I need him to hold me, kiss me—give all of himself. For every day he protects me, the consequences loom darker and taller. Soon, they’ll crash down on us.

The war is about to begin.

GUEST POST by Sunniva Dee

"The blurb of Shattering Halos starts with "I traded my death for love." I want to know what crazy things would the author do for love."

LOL, what a creative question—I love it!

I think the reason why I write New Adult literature is that I've been there in terms of doing crazy things for love. I'm a passionate person in everything that I do, and yes—I never had a problem going all out for love. To brush low points, in my college years I've banged on doors in the middle of the night in a rage over fights with my then boyfriend. I've… yeah, no. Enough about my college years. Let's just say that the ultimate crazy thing I've done for love was to pack up my entire home, ship it off from Bergen, Norway (yes, to the left of Sweden, all the way up north, there, in Europe, by the North Pole) to move to Los Angeles because of my love. Twelve years later, I'm still married to my Angelino husband, Michael, but we're now living in Savannah, Georgia. If he told me he'd like to move to Bali next, I'd go—as long as I got to bring my laptop. ;)

xoxo

Sunniva

AUTHOR BIO

I write New Adult fiction with a paranormal twist and don’t shy away from romance and heart-wrenching passion when necessary.

I moved from Norway to the United States in 2001, and the first awesome five years I spent in the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles. Then I read “The Book,” aka Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which spurred my husband and me to move cross country to beautiful Savannah, Georgia.

I’m currently on my seventh year in the Deep South, where I enjoy the heat and the humidity. Besides writing, I spend my time with our “petting zoo” as in an opinionated parrot, a herd of cats that are experts on keyboard shortcuts, and puppies that…uh, bark.

I hold a Master’s degree in languages, with concentrations within literature and linguistics. I taught at college level for a decade before settling in as a graduate adviser at the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Writing is my passion, my joy, and my addiction. When I’m not writing, I read.

Shattering Halos is my debut novel, and its standalone sequel, Stargazer, is due out later this year.

Author links:

WEBSITE

GOODREADS

TWITTER

FACEBOOK

Giveaway:

• Kindle Wifi (US) or 50$ Amazon Gift Card (INT)
• 4x eBook copy of Shattering Halos

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Shatter Me

SHATTER ME (Shatter Me #1)

by Tahereh Mafi

BLURB:

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

PURCHASE:

 

MY THOUGHTS:

4.5 birds

Writing:

The first sentence was perfect. It was all I needed to know this is my kind of book.

"I've been locked up for 264 days"

The writing is delightful. It has parts with some sort of poetic style and metaphors. Awesome.

The chapters were short. Always useful for the "one more chapter" excuse.

I liked how the author mingles what Juliette says with her thoughts and true feelings.

"You can't touch me". I whisper. I'm lying, is what I don't tell him. He can touch me, is what I'll never tell him. Please touch me, is what I want to tell him. 

But things happen when people touch me. Strange things. Bad things. Dead things.

Characters:

Personalities are well defined. 

I liked that Juliette's personality is so moulded by the background with her parents. I enjoyed how much she changed through the story, first being so scared and sad, not being able to trust anyone  and then becoming so confident and kick a**.

James is funny and cute. Benji is awesome, he made me giggle a lot.

Warner intrigues me, eventhough he is mean and cruel, there must be a redeemable quality in him.

Adam... he is nice, sweet and caring. I like him but something is missing.

Plot:

I like the premise very much. It was such an entertaining and unique plot. 

Thrilling. I was intrigued by the fact that Juliette knew Adam. I liked how that turned out.

The love story is sweet and sexy.

Cover: 

You can see it. I'm in love with every detail of it.

To sum up:

Definitely an outstanding first book for a series.

I have Unravel Me (Shatter Me #2) in my shelves already so I'll be reviewing it soon.

Essence: Guest post, playlist and giveaway

Essence by A.L. Waddington 

(The EVE Series #1) 

Published by: Booktrope Publishing

Publication date: January 15th 2014

Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult

Synopsis:

Jocelyn Timmons does not believe she is anything special — just an ordinary high school senior, living an ordinary life full of school-work, volleyball and friends. She’s about to find out how wrong she is.

Jackson Chandler moved in to the house across the street. His dark wavy hair, green eyes and charismatic personality draws everyone to him. Everyone, but Jocelyn.

Whenever Jackson gets near Jocelyn she feels ill and dizzy. When he touches her, she blacks out and has visions of another life, in another time. As the odd hallucinations evolve and become clearer, she feels a strong pull towards the people she sees there. Frightened, she watches her once stable life begin to crumble around her and she begins to question her own sanity.

Could it be possible that these episodes are actually her own memories of a life she is living somehow, somewhere, some-when? Maybe this is time-travel or some other paranormal mysticism? Our minds often wander, but can our souls?

(Enlightened, Book2 releases April 21, 2014.)

Goodreads

Purchase: 

Amazon

B&N

AUTHOR BIO:

A.L. Waddington completed her undergraduate studies at University of Texas Dallas and Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis with a BS in Psychology. Angela and her husband, Ty, have a son, two daughters, a puppy, and an oversized cat.  They reside in Indiana.

Author Links:

http://www.alwaddington.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5139182.A_L_Waddington

https://www.facebook.com/authoralwaddington

https://twitter.com/eveseries

Research on the Eve series

by A. L. Waddington

I did a great deal of research before I began writing my EVE series, especially for the 19th century half of the series. My research included everything from the clothing, to the furniture, and architecture to the social structure that was considered appropriate for her social status.

I also did a great deal of research on dialogue/language and considered maintaining a strict adherence to it, but the more I thought about it, I didn’t want to throw my readers drastically from one style to another. I thought it was too big of a jump and would make it too difficult for the books/series to flow smoothly. Therefore, I only made subtle changes that allow my readers to tell the difference in language/speech between the two time periods, but still allow the reader to transition between the two periods with ease.

Enlightened Playlist 

Book2 releases April 21, 2014.

 Click on the name to go to Youtube.

~Out on the Town by Fun 

~Just Give Me a Reason by Pink (featuring Nate Ruess)

~Blackbird by The Beatles

~Ho Hey by The Lumineers

~Tomorrow by Sixx A.M.

~Are You With Me Now by Sixx A.M.

~Smile by Sixx A.M.

~Sure Feels Right by Sixx A.M.

~Breathe (2am) by Anna Nalick

~Life Goes On by Poison

~Breakeven by The Script

~Bonfire Heart by James Blunt

~Boston by Augustana  

~Sweet and Low by Augustana


Giveaway:

International.
Prize: E-copy of Essence by A.L Waddington

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Tour wide giveaway

Open to US only

Prizes: Signed copy of both Essence (book 1) and Enlightened (Book 2)

a Rafflecopter giveaway