2.26.2018

Spotlight: Promise by Minrose Gwin

Promise by Minrose Gwin
Published: February 27, 2018
Publisher: William Morrow

Synopsis
A few minutes after 9 p.m. on Palm Sunday, April 5, 1936, a massive funnel cloud flashing a giant fireball and roaring like a runaway train careened into the thriving cotton-mill town of Tupelo, Mississippi, killing more than 200 people, not counting an unknown number of black citizens, one-third of Tupelo’s population, who were not included in the official casualty figures.

When the tornado hits, Dovey, a local laundress, is flung by the terrifying winds into a nearby lake. Bruised and nearly drowned, she makes her way across Tupelo to find her small family—her hardworking husband, Virgil, her clever sixteen-year-old granddaughter, Dreama, and Promise, Dreama’s beautiful light-skinned three-month-old son.

Slowly navigating the broken streets of Tupelo, Dovey stops at the house of the despised McNabb family. Inside, she discovers that the tornado has spared no one, including Jo, the McNabbs’ dutiful teenage daughter, who has suffered a terrible head wound. When Jo later discovers a baby in the wreckage, she is certain that she’s found her baby brother, Tommy, and vows to protect him.

During the harrowing hours and days of the chaos that follows, Jo and Dovey will struggle to navigate a landscape of disaster and to battle, both the demons and the history that link and haunt them. Drawing on historical events, Minrose Gwin beautifully imagines natural and human destruction in the deep South of the 1930s through the experiences of two remarkable women whose lives are indelibly connected by forces beyond their control. A story of loss, hope, despair, grit, courage, and race, Promise reminds us of the transformative power and promise that come from confronting our most troubled relations with one another.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MINROSE GWIN, like the characters in her latest novel, Promise, grew up in Tupelo, Mississippi. She began her writing career as a newspaper and wire service reporter in cities throughout the southeast. Her civil rights-era novel, The Queen of Palmyra, was a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection, and a finalist for the John Gardner Fiction Book Award.  Her memoir, Wishing for Snow, tells the story of her mother’s descent into mental illness.

Wearing another hat, Minrose is also the author of cultural and literary studies books that focus on racial injustice. In Remembering Medgar Evers: Writing the Long Civil Rights Movement, she writes of the reverberating impact of the Civil Rights leader’s martyrdom. She is also a coeditor of The Literature of the American South and has taught as a professor at universities across the country, most recently the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.


PROMISE IN MINROSE’S OWN WORDS:

Promise is based on an actual event that occurred in 1936, the historically devastating tornado that leveled my hometown of Tupelo, in northeastern Mississippi, during the height of the Great Depression. With winds estimated at between 261-318 miles per hour, an F5, the highest level on the Fujita Scale, it leveled about half the town of around 7,000. The official death toll was 233; around 1,000 were listed as injured, many of them losing limbs. Based on these figures, it remains today the fourth most deadly tornado in the history of the United States.

Afterward, the dead and dying were strewn about the town, dangling in the sheared limbs of leafless trees, buried under debris, pinned to the bottom of a small lake called Gum Pond, laid out in makeshift morgues. Featherless chickens and hornless steers wandered the city streets. Debris littered the neighboring state of Tennessee. Growing up in my grandparents’ sturdy four-square brick house, one of the few left standing on their side of town, I heard these stories and many more about what we had come to call “our tornado.” I thought I knew everything there was to know, truth or lore, about the Tupelo tornado. I was wrong.

It was in 2011, when another monster tornado carved a giant hole through Tuscaloosa, Alabama, that questions emerged about the official death records of the Tupelo tornado. Those questions exposed a deeper wound in my town, the wound of race. As it turned out, the only victims counted were white people; the death and injury tolls were in reality much higher than they appeared on paper. Baldly stated, black bodies were considered so unimportant that they weren’t even counted as casualties in the official records. Digging into newspaper archives in the wake of the storm, I also found listings for separate restaurants serving free food to white and ‘colored’ people, separate hotels, even separate “Box Car Cities,” the cars made available for temporary housing by the Frisco railroad. With the notable exceptions of a photograph of a row of bodies of African Americans lying in an alley and a group of black men dredging Gum Pond for bodies, even the existing photographs of the storm’s wounded and able-bodied survivors are of white people; the houses pictured in various states of wreckage were mostly inhabited by whites.

So the cold hard fact of the matter was that what my family called “our tornado” wasn’t “ours” at all, at least not in the larger, more communal sense of the term. It was the white story but not the whole story. The real story, the whole story of the tornado, is one of the deeper devastations of racial injustice, which extended even beyond the grave.

I came upon this real story when I was in the middle of another novel, but it gripped me and it angered me and it wouldn’t let me go. I began to feel I had a responsibility to write this story.  And I have felt it even more as time has gone on and we’ve been confronted with events in Ferguson and Charleston and Charlottesville. The story of racial violence, racial injustice, is an old story; but unfortunately and tragically, it continues to make itself new, and not just in the South but throughout the country. So, for me, Promise is as much about our present, and even our future, as it is about our past.

 MEET MINROSE GWIN ON TOUR FOR PROMISE

Tuesday, Feb. 27: Novel. | 6:00 PM | Memphis, TN

Wednesday, Feb. 28: Reed’s Gumtree Books | 5:00 PM | Tupelo, MS

Thursday, March 1: Square Books | 6:00 PM | Oxford, MS

Friday, March 2: Turnrow Books | 11:00 AM | Greenwood, MS

Saturday, March 3: Lemuria Books | 2:00 PM | Jackson, MS

Tuesday, March 6: Flyleaf Books | 6:00 PM | Chapel Hill, NC

Saturday, March 10: McIntyre’s | 2:00 PM | Pittsboro, NC

Monday, March 12: Country Bookshop | 5:00 PM | Southern Pines, NC

Tuesday, March 13: Quail Ridge | 7:00 PM | Raleigh, NC

Friday, March 16: Blue Ridge Books | 12:30 PM | Waynesville, NC

Saturday, March 17: M. Judson Booksellers & Storytellers | 6:30 PM | Greenville, SC

Sunday, March 18: Hub City Books “Delicious Reads” event | 2:00 PM | Spartanburg, SC

Wednesday, March 21: Octavia Books | 6:00 PM | New Orleans, LA

Thursday, March 22: Pass Christian Books | 5:30 PM | Pass Christian, MS

Saturday, March 24: Tennessee Williams Festival | New Orleans, LA

Thursday, April 12: Bookworks | 6:00 PM | Albuquerque, NM


ADVANCE PRAISE FOR PROMISE:

“Gwin's prose is profound and Faulkner-ian in tone. Those who enjoy Southern fiction that explores both sides of the color line will want to give Gwin's latest a gander and the novel's especially timely focus on what happens to communities in the aftermath of a natural disaster will draw many readers.”—Kirkus Reviews

“[An] atmospheric whirlwind of a book. A memorable, dreamlike narrative…that vividly conveys what it was like to survive the fourth most deadly tornado in U.S. history; it also brings to light the vast disparity in the care and treatment of white vs. black residents”—Library Journal

“This story of bravery and survival is heart wrenching and uplifting, well researched and realistic. Filled with beautiful language and a quick pace, Promise will not be easily forgotten by readers.”—RT Book Reviews, 4 stars

“Promise is an extraordinary novel [...] one of racial divides, good and evil, destruction and salvation and those clear moments of grace and humanity that bring hope into the most desperate times. I could not put it down.”—Jill McCorkle, author of Going Away Shoes

“Gwin’s gift shines in the complexity of her characters and their fraught relationships with each other, their capacity for courage and hope, coupled with their passion for justice. [...] I couldn’t put this novel down, and I don’t think you’ll want to either.”—Jonis Agee, bestselling author of The River Wife

“This book is a monumental achievement, and Gwin is a fiercely talented writer.”—Jaimee Wriston Colbert, author of Wild Things

“Lyrically precise, taut, and realistic, Promise kept me absorbed from beginning to end.”—Julie Kibler, bestselling author of Calling Me Home

“Promise is a powerful story about yet another forgotten chapter in our great national drama. Minrose Gwin knows her characters well and writes about them and their place and times with sympathy and wisdom.”—Steve Yarbrough, author of The Realm of Last Chances

2.22.2018

Book Blitz: Happy Endings Book Club by Kylie Gilmore


Happy Endings Book Club Boxed Set Books 1-3 
Kylie Gilmore
Publication date: January 10th 2018
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Book 1: Hidden Hollywood
She’s on top…

When superstar actress Claire Jordan researched her role for the Fierce Trilogy movies, she never expected the bond she feels with the author and her romance book club aka The Happy Endings Book Club. Soon Claire finds herself confessing her secret longing for a regular guy—no more egocentric wealthy players—and the book club is all too ready to help. In disguise as a regular girl, she’s all set for a date with book-club-approved Josh Campbell.
He’s on top…
Billionaire tech CEO Jake Campbell is weary of gold-digging women, especially the glamorous superficial types. So when his identical twin, Josh, calls in a favor, asking Jake to step in as him on a date, Jake figures one of Josh’s cute girl-next-door types might be just what he needs. One night of passion with the sweet girl next door leaves Jake wanting more, except she seems to have vanished.
Sometimes a Happy Ending is just the beginning. 
Book 2: Inviting Trouble
Madison Campbell has worshipped her older brother’s best friend, Parker Shaw, for as long as she can remember. So the night before he leaves for the Air Force, she decides he’s leaving town with her virginity. All she has to do is transform her tomboy self into a sexy woman with a bit of borrowed makeup and some creative fashion choices. The results? One drunken kiss that Park doesn’t even remember.

Ten years later, no man has ever gotten close to her heart the way Park did. And now that he’s back, the very unfeminine Madison refuses to blow her second chance. But when her bold attempts to snag his attention (“Oops! Dropped my towel.”) fail miserably, she does something completely insane—she caves to a makeover from the meddling matchmaker in charge of The Happy Endings Book Club. Hey, Park, you want some of this? Madison is about to find out. 
Book 3: So Revealing
The last thing Charlotte Vega needs is a cocky HOT stuntman like Ty Campbell in her life. But when he pulls the ultimate stunt—a sexy romantic gesture that ends with a charming invitation to a sunset dinner cruise—she finds him impossible to resist. Cue disaster.

Their rocky first date goes from bad to worse when his yacht (okay, it’s actually borrowed) gets stranded in deep mud. Turns out there’s nothing Ty can do but wait hours and hours for high tide with no power, no way to cook dinner, and a hangry sexy-as-hell woman.
But Ty is determined to salvage the date so he starts a game to pass the time. Only what Ty learns makes him realize he may have just botched a date with the perfect woman. How will he ever win her now?
The Happy Endings Book Club series continues with Book 4, Formal Arrangement, plus more! 

Happy Endings Book Club Series
Book 1: Hidden Hollywood
Book 2: Inviting Trouble
Book 3: So Revealing
Book 4: Formal Arrangement
Book 5: Bad Boy Done Wrong
Book 6: Mess With Me
Book 7: Resisting Fate
99¢ for a limited time only!
EXCERPT:
Hidden Hollywood Excerpt
© 2016 Kylie Gilmore

Claire bit her lower lip. “Dammit. This is why I can’t have real relationships. I can’t trust anyone.”
“You can trust me.”
She sighed. “I don’t even know you.”
“Get to know me.”
“Jake…” She looked away.
“One date, the real deal. Jake and Claire.”
She was tempted. He could tell. She didn’t give him a no right away and now she was searching his face, looking for the truth. He leaned forward, brushing his lips against hers, coaxing. He pulled back and met her eyes, fully prepared to do this all night if he had to. Coaxing, charming, easing his way in. He’d thought coaxing would be too difficult with the way he wanted her, but having her pull away was much harder.
She spoke quietly. “You don’t want that kind of spotlight on you. It’s not pretty.”
It wasn’t a no.
“I want you, and whatever comes with it, I don’t care.” He cradled her face with both hands. “I want Claire.”
She closed her eyes, and he dropped his hands to her shoulders, sliding them down the satiny smooth skin of her arms to her hands. He took her hands from behind her and pulled them forward, just holding them. She didn’t pull away. He sensed she was leaning toward letting him in.
Finally she spoke, the words filling him with elation. “We’d have to keep it quiet.”
Not that he wanted to keep it quiet. He just wanted to be with her so much he was willing to play the game her way. For now. He kissed her softly and spoke against her lips. “Is that a yes?”
“Yes.” She shoved him away. “Now stop kissing me. One date. Jake and Claire.”
“Why do I have to stop kissing you?”
“Because you want to get to know me, remember?”
“I can get to know your body first. Get reacquainted.”
She laughed. “Yeah. I’ve heard that one before.”
He figured she probably did. Everyone wanted the sexiest woman alive. He’d seen the magazine giving her that honor and her bikini body splashed everywhere. He knew that kind of attention didn’t always bring out the best in people, and he realized he had to stand out from the pack.
He stepped back and helped her off the table.
“Such a gentleman,” she teased.
“It’s all an illusion,” he replied, not bothering to hide the edge of unsatisfied lust in his voice.
“Story of my life,” she said breezily. “I’ll text Hailey to let you know when I’m free.”
“At least give me your number now that we’ve established how much you lust for me.” She laughed, and he grinned. “I’d like to stop going through other people.” He pulled his cell from his pocket, punched in the code, and handed it over.
She typed her number in while saying, “I never give this number to anyone. Only a handful of people have it on a need-to-know basis. Can you handle that kind of responsibility?”
“What do you think?” It was an honor and, hell, he’d earned it with all his restraint.
She met his eyes, fire back in hers. “I hope so. I swear I will hunt you down—”
He cut her off with a kiss. Not a gentle one. The kind that said he’d be taking what he wanted and she’d damn well like it. She sagged against him.
When he was good and ready, he broke the kiss and snagged his cell from her limp hand. “Later, Claire Jordan.”
She fought back a smile and then beamed a big one at him, stunningly beautiful in her well-kissed, hot-for-him state. “Later, Jake Campbell.”
He grinned and headed out the door. Now that was more like it.

Kylie Gilmore is the USA Today bestselling author of the Clover Park series, the Clover Park STUDS series, and the brand new Happy Endings Book Club series. She writes humorous romance that makes you laugh, cry, and reach for a cold glass of water.
Kylie lives in New York with her family, two cats, and a nutso dog. When she's not writing, wrangling kids, or dutifully taking notes at writing conferences, you can find her flexing her muscles all the way to the high cabinet for her secret chocolate stash.

XBTBanner1

2.21.2018

Review: The Grownup by Gillian Flynn

The Grownup by Gillian Flynn
Published: November 3, 2015
Publisher: Crown
Format: via Overdrive
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis
A canny young woman is struggling to survive by perpetrating various levels of mostly harmless fraud. On a rainy April morning, she is reading auras at Spiritual Palms when Susan Burke walks in. A keen observer of human behavior, our unnamed narrator immediately diagnoses beautiful, rich Susan as an unhappy woman eager to give her lovely life a drama injection. However, when the "psychic" visits the eerie Victorian home that has been the source of Susan's terror and grief, she realizes she may not have to pretend to believe in ghosts anymore. Miles, Susan's teenage stepson, doesn't help matters with his disturbing manner and grisly imagination. The three are soon locked in a chilling battle to discover where the evil truly lurks and what, if anything, can be done to escape it.

My Thoughts
This was one creepy and outrageous read that had me guessing until the very end and even then I wasn’t sure what was true and what wasn’t. These two women meet when one is conning her into believing she is a psychic who can clean her home of evilness. We soon learn that maybe this home is indeed possessed and she soon realizes she is in over her head. We meet Susan’s stepson who is pure evil and will do anything to get rid of her.

Now what happens next is when things get weird and I didn’t know what was what. You see we find out the real reason how these two women are connected…in a way. Soon the stepson pits these two women against each other so you don’t know what is true. Miles is rude and crude and definitely scary beyond words, and he wants the younger girl to take him with her or else he will call the cops on her. This read was weird beyond everything but in a crazy good way. You see these two are cut from the same cloth because they are both crazy and have this odd and sinister way about them. It’s a short read and people either like this read or they don’t there is no middle ground but I liked it. You have to take Gillian Flynn’s work for what it is. It's usually dark, twisted and a little sick but that what I like about her work. This is one read that will take you for one crazy and odd ride, I for one was definitely intrigued by it.

2.20.2018

Review: The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson
Published: February 3, 2015
Publisher: William Morrow
Format: audiobook
Rating: 5/5

Synopsis
On a night flight from London to Boston, Ted Severson meets the stunning and mysterious Lily Kintner. Sharing one too many martinis, the strangers begin to play a game of truth, revealing very intimate details about themselves. Ted talks about his marriage that’s going stale and his wife Miranda, who he’s sure is cheating on him. Ted and his wife were a mismatch from the start—he the rich businessman, she the artistic free spirit—a contrast that once inflamed their passion, but has now become a cliché.

But their game turns a little darker when Ted jokes that he could kill Miranda for what she’s done. Lily, without missing a beat, says calmly, “I’d like to help.” After all, some people are the kind worth killing, like a lying, stinking, cheating spouse. . . .

Back in Boston, Ted and Lily’s twisted bond grows stronger as they begin to plot Miranda's demise. But there are a few things about Lily’s past that she hasn’t shared with Ted, namely her experience in the art and craft of murder, a journey that began in her very precocious youth.

Suddenly these co-conspirators are embroiled in a chilling game of cat-and-mouse, one they both cannot survive . . . with a shrewd and very determined detective on their tail.

My Thoughts
The Kind Worth Killing is an amazing and captivating tale of Ted and Lily two strangers who meet on a flight from London to Boston. On the long plane ride seated next to one another, they start talking and with the help of a few drinks begin to tell each other things one might not tell anyone otherwise. Ted begins to tell Lily that he thinks his wife is cheating on him and Lily simply tells him she will help him kill his wife. WTF?! Yes, she did tell him that. So they make a plan to meet again and if they both show up the plan is set in motion.

We get the backstory to why Ted thinks his wife is cheating and we also get Lily’s whole backstory to when she was a kid and her life growing up. We get glimpses to why she is the way she is. She is twisted and we are shown she has been this way from the very start. This read had me on my toes from the very start. There are twists and turns and we see why Lily would help a stranger she just met. We see how this web is intertwined and when it was revealed I was shocked! The characters are intriguing and the way everyone comes together is so smart and flawless. The character of Lily is sick and twisted yet I felt sorry for her at times but then she does something and it’s like are you serious? She is one of the best characters I’ve read in a long time and she definitely stayed with me way after I finished the book.

I’ve become obsessed with Peter Swanson’s reads. Each one better than the next, the way he writes thrillers is simply wonderful. Just when you think you have figured it out he throws a curveball and totally takes everything to left field. Like I've said I have enjoyed all of his books that I have read, I only need to read one more, but this one is my fave it’s a masterpiece in my opinion. If you are looking for something that keeps you engaged and will blow your mind look no further than this read.

2.14.2018

Book Blitz: Something Like This by Tracy Krimmer

Something Just Like This banner 
This is my stop during the book blitz for Something Just Like This by Tracy Krimmer. This book blitz is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The book blitz runs from 14 till 15 February. Read on for more information about the book, a teaser image and a giveaway for an Amazon gift card! See the tour schedule here.
  Something-Just-Like-This-Teaser-valentine Something Just Like This
Something Just Like This By Tracy Krimmer 
Genre: Romantic Comedy 
Age category: Adult 
Release Date: February 14, 2018
Love? Second chances? That crap is for romantics, not realists like Juliette. She has a bad attitude about love and an even worse one when it comes to second chances. And she may dress like an elf for a few weeks out of the year, but that doesn’t mean she loves Christmas. Stability? Purpose? Landon is surfing a pleasant wave of both until he's fired. Devastating news from his sister certainly doesn’t help. At least he has the holidays to look forward to. When Landon shows up at the mall and Juliette prevents a disaster, he can’t stop thinking about that sweet elf. Juliette doesn’t believe in the spirit of Christmas, but she can’t help but wonder why Landon was in her line that day. Could Landon deserve one of those second chances she's so unwilling to give?
 Excerpt

“Don’t be a Grinch!”
“Huh?” I lift my gaze and my best friend and co-worker Carly stands in the doorway, the smile so bright on her face it almost blinds me. “What do you mean don’t be a Grinch?”
“Oh, you know,” she says as she makes her way into the room, planting herself in my chair. “Like you are every holiday season.”
“I’m not a Grinch.” Maybe I am. I try my best not to show it. It’s possible I don’t have a convincing poker face. Poker was never my game, anyway. I’m more of a Solitaire kind of woman.
“You most certainly are. Every Christmas party you sulk at the table drinking gin and tonic and refuse to join in on anything. This year, you are in. You’ll be the life of the party.”
“Over my dead body.”
“Shit, Jules, your stiff body would be a better time than you are alive at these functions.”
She’s right, and I know it. Why is she always right? I want to take offense but it’s no secret I’m not Christmas’s biggest fan. I may be the only elf working at the mall that despises it. The elf job isn’t for me, though. I do it for others. That’s festive, isn’t it? Isn’t Christmas about giving? I do plenty of that.
“Leave me alone. And why are you so bubbly? Did you drink a bottle of bubble bath or something?” I grab the container of pens, staples, and paperclips out of the box and place them on the desk. This is much easier to deal with than the picture of my family with our fake smiles. I don’t know why I keep that picture anyway.
“Oh, I don’t know.”
She dots her face with her fingertips, moving them around from one side to the other. Why is she acting so weird? “Wait.” I stop when I see it. “Are you wearing an engagement ring?”
She squeals and pops out of the chair, rushing over to show me. Her hand misses smacking me in the face as she shows off her princess cut ring, sparkles and all. “Pretty.”
“Pretty? Are you kidding me right now, Jules? This ring is gorgeous and fit for the fairest princess in the land.”
“Which is you, I assume.”
“What crawled into your pants this morning? Or should I ask who didn’t? Another bad date, huh?”
I shrug, not in the mood to discuss my date with Romeo. No joke. My cousin Dana claimed she found the perfect guy for me, and I said yes to a blind date. His name was Romy, like Mira Sorvino in that movie Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion. I’d only ever heard the name Romy from that movie. It turned out he used Romy as a nickname for Romeo. Yeah. Dana set me up with a Romeo because of course we’d be Romeo and Juliette. Barf. I don’t even spell my name like the Shakespearean character, and the last thing I would ever do is poison myself over a man. Dana had her fun. I did not. She’s never setting me up again.
“Let’s say I got home very early, watched an entire movie, and was asleep by ten.”
“Ouch. That is a bad date.”

You can find Something Just Like This on Goodreads 
You can buy Something Just Like This on Amazon for only $2.99 through February 15. 
It is available to read with Kindle Unlimited. Something-Just-Like-This-Teaser-Starbucks
Tracy Krimmer
About the Author: 
Tracy Krimmer loves coffee, popcorn, Drew Barrymore, and the movie Saving Silverman. She enjoys reading great books (of course) and writing realistic characters for you to enjoy. When she listens to music she prefers the 80s and 90s music she grew up on. In a typical day you’ll find her writing at one of her favorite spots--on the couch, at the kitchen table, or at her favorite hometown coffee shop. You can find and contact Tracy here: - Website - Twitter - Facebook - Reader Group - Goodreads - Amazon - Bookbub - Instagram - Newsletter 
Giveaway 
There is a tour wide giveaway for the book blitz of Something Just Like This. One winner will win a $10 Amazon Gift card! 
For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below
banner Lola's Blog Tours

2.13.2018

Review: You by Caroline Kepnes

You by Caroline Kepnes
Published: June 16, 2015
Publisher: Atria Books
Format: audiobook via Overdrive
Rating: 5/5

Synopsis
When a beautiful, aspiring writer strides into the East Village bookstore where Joe Goldberg works, he does what anyone would do: he Googles the name on her credit card.

There is only one Guinevere Beck in New York City. She has a public Facebook account and Tweets incessantly, telling Joe everything he needs to know: she is simply Beck to her friends, she went to Brown University, she lives on Bank Street, and she’ll be at a bar in Brooklyn tonight—the perfect place for a “chance” meeting.

As Joe invisibly and obsessively takes control of Beck’s life, he orchestrates a series of events to ensure Beck finds herself in his waiting arms. Moving from stalker to boyfriend, Joe transforms himself into Beck’s perfect man, all while quietly removing the obstacles that stand in their way—even if it means murder.

My Thoughts
I had heard so much about this read that I was scared to see if the hype was real. Well to me it was real and I loved it! I had bought a physical copy but I’ve been in an audiobook kind of mood so I listened to it that way and boy am I glad I did!

You is the story of Joe who works in a bookstore and becomes obsessed, to say the least with Beck who comes into the store one day. He soon gets her info and starts to stalk her as a way to get into her life. Joe is one the best characters I’ve encountered in recent years. He is creepy and listening to this via audio just made it for me. The narrator Santino Fontana IS Joe, he gives that creepiness that it scary but also gripping at the same time. The things that we find out that Joe does is so disturbing that I felt like I needed a shower to wipe off the griminess. This book was everything I wanted it to be and way more than I thought I could have imagined.

If you want a thriller that will take you for the wildest ride of your life look no further than You. This isn’t for the faint at heart so if you don’t like creepy reads or you get easily offended then this isn't the one for you but if you aren’t then I highly recommend this awesomely unforgettable read.

2.12.2018

Review: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
Published: September 2002
Publisher: Scholastic
Format: purchased
Rating: 5/5

Synopsis
Leo Borlock follows the unspoken rule at Mica Area High School: don't stand out--under any circumstances! Then Stargirl arrives at Mica High and everything changes--for Leo and for the entire school. After 15 years of home schooling, Stargirl bursts into tenth grade in an explosion of color and a clatter of ukulele music, enchanting the Mica student body.

But the delicate scales of popularity suddenly shift, and Stargirl is shunned for everything that makes her different. Somewhere in the midst of Stargirl's arrival and rise and fall, normal Leo Borlock has tumbled into love with her.

My Thoughts
Stargirl tore me to pieces. It’s the story of a girl who goes by Stargirl and she decides to stop homeschooling and attend the local high school. She is a free spirit, to say the least, she dresses how she likes and says what she wants and doesn’t care what others think.
Leo the opposite of Stargirl he doesn’t want to be different. He wants to just lay low and not makes waves and just make it through high school. However, he does find something special in Stargirl and soon finds himself wanting to know more about her and find out what makes her the way she is.

I honestly loved this read. I know kids can be cruel and being different can make others uncomfortable but I loved how she didn’t care and wanted to be the best person she could even if that meant being different. I also liked Leo and while he made me a little mad at least because he struggled with his feelings for her. I mean I get how it is hard being a teen and how you just want be accepted and being different sometimes isn’t the best but at times I didn’t like how he treated her but being Stargirl she never really let that get her down.

Overall I loved the message of this book. That being an individual is a good thing and yes being a teen is hard but you can be yourself and not always have to fall in with the crowd. Just be your authentic self and live your best life possible. Nothing else matters. This is one book I encourage all to read we could all learn a thing or two from Stargirl.

2.08.2018

Cover Reveal: The Second Chances Duet by Claire Contreras

SBPRBANNER-ClairContreras-Dual-CR The Second Chances Duet by Claire Contreras
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Then There Was You Publication Date: March 1st, 2018
TTWY AMAZON.jpg
Love and the right timing were two things I didn't believe in.
Love is about walking to the edge of the cliff and taking the leap together. Timing was never on our side. My first mistake was hooking up with my best friend. My second came years later when we met again, and I fell for her. My third was letting her go because I had to. Because a love like this wasn't built to withstand the winds coming in our direction.
Love and timing. I didn't believe in either.
Then there was you . . .

Pre-Order Today! If you are an iBooks or Nook user, you can PREORDER Then There was You for release on February 27th! This title will not be available for purchase on iBooks or Nook after February 27th.
Releases on March 1st on Amazon and Free in KU! There will be no preorder for this title.
Add to Goodreads

My Way Back to You Publication Date: March 15th, 2018
MWBTY AMAZON
Synopsis to come March 1St
Pre-Order Today! My Way Back to You for release on March 13th! This title will not be available for purchase on iBooks or Nook after March 13th.
iBooks /  Nook
Releases on March 15th on Amazon and Free in KU! Preorder on Amazon on March 1st!
Add to Goodreads

Meet Claire:
Claire Contreras is a New York Times Best Selling Author. Her books range from romantic suspense to contemporary romance and are currently translated in seven different languages. She lives in Miami, Fl with her husband, two adorable boys, three bulldogs, and two stray cats that she refuses to admit are hers (even though they live on her porch, she named them, and continues to feed them). When she's not writing, she's usually lost in a book.
Connect with Claire:

2.07.2018

Blog Tour: You Will Be Mine by Natasha Preston

We are so excited to be sharing the release of #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Natasha Preston's YOU WILL BE MINE. Young Adult and thriller fans won't want to miss this one--be sure to grab your copy today!


About YOU WILL BE MINE

Love turns deadly in a new, heart-pounding thriller from Natasha Preston, author of the runaway bestsellers The Cellar and The Cabin. ROSES ARE RED VIOLETS ARE BLUE WATCH YOUR BACK I’M COMING FOR YOU Lylah and her friends can’t wait to spend a night out together. Partying is the perfect way to let loose from the stress of life and school, and Lylah hopes that hitting the dance floor with Chase, her best friend, will bring them closer together. She’s been crushing on him since they met. If only he thought of her the same way… The girls are touching up their makeup and the guys are sliding on their coats when the doorbell rings. No one is there. An envelope sits on the doormat. It’s an anonymous note addressed to their friend Sonny. A secret admirer? Maybe. They all laugh it off. Except Sonny never comes home. And a new note arrives: YOUR TURN

Add YOU WILL BE MINE to your Goodreads shelf here!

 Get your copy of YOU WILL BE MINE today!

Amazon / iBooks / B&N / Kobo

 

Read an excerpt from YOU WILL BE MINE now!

I breathe in deep through my nose and out through my mouth—an exercise my therapist taught me when I started to feel like I was going to fall apart. I can slowly feel myself start to relax when the doorbell rings. Sighing, I get up. My housemates must’ve forgotten their keys or be carrying too many bags to unlock the door. I glance through the window, but no one is there. Another doorbell ditch? My blood runs cold as I open the door. An envelope is sitting on our mat. The world turns mute as the blood rushes to my ears. Bending down, I scoop up the envelope. It’s addressed to Isaac. And it looks like exactly the one that came for Sonny. No… I turn it over and pull out the note. My hands are shaking as I read: YOUR TURN “Isaac!” rips from my throat. “What?” he calls from his room down the hall. My voice is trapped in my throat as I look up and down the street. There are still a few folks leaving flowers, looking at the makeshift memorial in front of our house. Did one of them do this? Did one of them see who left the note? I feel so exposed. Vulnerable. I draw back inside and shut the door, trembling. Isaac’s footsteps thud from his bedroom into the foyer. “Lylah, what?” His face falls and his eyes widen as he sees what’s in my hand. “Is that another note?” Nodding, I hand it to him. “Jesus,” he whispers. “Who was it addressed to?” I look up at him, my vision blurring with tears. “You.”

About NATASHA PRESTON

UK native Natasha Preston grew up in small villages and towns. She discovered her love of writing when she stumbled across an amateur writing site and uploaded her first story and hasn't looked back since. She enjoys writing contemporary romance, gritty Young Adult thrillers and, of course, the occasional serial killer. 

2.06.2018

Spotlight: Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton

NEXT YEAR in HAVANA CHANEL CLEETON ON SALE FEBRUARY 6, 2018 
Inspired by true events in her family’s history, Chanel Cleeton beautifully illuminates the enduring heartbreak and unwavering hope of a country torn by revolution. “Chanel Cleeton’s prose is as beautiful as Cuba itself, and the story she weaves—of exile and loss, memory and myth, forbidden love and enduring friendship—is at once sweeping and beautifully intimate.” —Jennifer Robson, USA Today bestselling author of Somewhere in France “A vivid, transporting novel. Next Year in Havana is about journeys—into exile, into history, and into questions of home and identity. It’s an engrossing read.” —David Ebershoff, author of The Danish Girl and The 19th Wife Advance praise for Next Year in Havana Next year in Cuba! For over half a century, exiled Cuban Americans have celebrated with this traditional toast—a bittersweet sentiment that captures the steadfast belief and dashed hopes of a future where they return to their beloved home country. 
Chanel Cleeton beautifully portrays this complex and deeply passionate feeling with her new novel, NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA (Berkley Trade Paperback Original; February 6, 2018; $16.00), a story about a young woman who travels to Havana to honor her late grandmother’s dying wish—and unearths a family secret hidden since the Cuban Revolution. Alternating between Cuba at the moment of Fidel Castro’s political ascension and the country that emerged in its wake, Cleeton brings to life the pivotal moment in history that forced a small nation into the center of a socialist movement and the focus of the world’s attention. Cleeton drew inspiration for her novel from her own family’s desperate departure from the country and her personal struggles with being torn between two cultures. 

In NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA, we meet Elisa Perez and Marisol Ferrera, separated by time and generations, but bound together by blood and their love for a country they never dared dream to see again. In 1958, nineteen-year-old Elisa is the daughter of a sugar baron and member of Cuba’s high society where she is largely sheltered from the country’s growing political unrest—until she finds herself involved in a clandestine affair with an impassioned revolutionary that changes the course of her life. More than fifty years later, her granddaughter, Marisol, returns to the country to fulfill Elisa’s last wish to scatter her ashes in the country of her birth. Once in Havana, Marisol soon follows in her grandmother’s footsteps when she finds herself attracted to a man with secrets of his own. Told through the alternating voices of Elisa and Marisol, NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA is a remarkable story of passion in politics and culture. At its heart, the book is a love letter to Cuba and Cleeton’s writing will seduce you from the first page. Touching on topical themes, Cleeton brilliantly uses commercial fiction to illuminate difficult issues such as identity and immigration, while giving a humanizing perspective through the lens of family and romance. Equal parts sweeping love story and historical fiction, NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA is an extraordinary tribute to an important chapter in history. 

Originally from Florida, Chanel Cleeton grew up on stories of her family’s exodus from Cuba following the events of the Cuban Revolution. Her passion for politics and history continued during her years spent studying in England where she earned a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Richmond, The American International University in London and a master’s degree in Global Politics from the London School of Economics & Political Science. Chanel also received her Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law. She loves to travel and has lived in the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. 

Release Day Blitz: Broken Beautiful Hearts by Kami Garcia

 

From the #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of BEAUTIFUL CREATURES comes BROKEN BEAUTIFUL HEARTS—a red-hot romance that will break your heart and put it back together again! Don’t miss this stunning new title from Kami Garcia!

BROKEN BEAUTIFUL HEARTS is now available at all fine retailers. Order your copy today!

   

From #1 New York Times–bestselling author Kami Garcia comes a red-hot romance that will break your heart and put it back together again.

Her heart has to break before it can open.

When star soccer player Peyton Rios receives an offer from her first-choice college, senior year starts off exactly as planned. But when Peyton uncovers her boyfriend’s dark secret, she confronts him—and finds herself falling down a flight of stairs. Peyton’s knee—and maybe her dream of going pro—is shattered. Everyone is talking: Was she pushed, or did she fall? Peyton knows the truth, even if no one believes her.

He has to let someone in before it’s too late.

With her future on the line, Peyton goes to stay with her uncle in a small Tennessee town to focus on her recovery. Dating is the last thing on her mind—until she meets sweet, sexy Owen Law.

But Peyton doesn’t trust her heart, especially when she senses that Owen is hiding something. When their secrets are finally exposed, Peyton has to decide if love is worth fighting for.


Order BROKEN BEAUTIFUL HEARTS here!

   

EXCERPT

April narrows her eyes. “I’d be careful if I were you.” “Or what? You’ll throw lip gloss at me?” I almost laugh. I’m done here.

Grace stifles a smile as I pass her on my way out, and I stop. This girl deserves a break. “By the way, your friend, and I use that term loosely”— I gesture at April—“didn’t dump Christian. He dumped her. She was whining about it before you walked in.”

“You bi—” April shouts at me as the door closes.

That was fun.

Sticking up for Grace cheered me up a little.

The stadium has emptied out for the most part, and the sight of the green field makes me feel like running. As a striker, it was my job to move the ball down the soccer field and score goals. The team relied on my speed.

I can’t remember a time when I didn’t play soccer. Dad spent hours dribbling alongside me—him with a standard soccer ball and me with a toddler-sized version. He stood in front of a flimsy net we’d made out of PVC pipes, and played goalkeeper for hours so I could practice my corner shots. I lose myself in the memories.

“Hey! Watch—”

I look up in time to see a guy’s broad chest before I walk right into him. My knee gives out, but he catches my arm.

“Nice save,” he says, as if I’m the one who kept him from falling instead of the other way around.

I jerk away from him. The combination of hearing Reed’s voice a few minutes ago and feeling a guy grab me from out of nowhere . . . it’s too much.

“You okay?” Brown eyes that look even darker against his pale skin.

It’s Owen, the mystery guy from the parking lot. “I’m fine.”

“You sure?”

Why won’t my pulse slow down?

“Yeah. I have to go.” I take off in the opposite direction, embarrassed.

I bumped into a guy and almost jumped out of my skin? This isn’t me. I’m the person who never flinches during horror movies.

The leg brace makes me feel helpless. What if a stranger had grabbed me instead of Owen? Knowing I couldn’t run or fight someone off terrifies me.

Or if someone tries to hurt me again.

Mom and Hawk are exactly where I left them. The Twins have returned from the locker room, freshly showered, and they swapped their football uniforms for jeans and T-shirts. The four of them are huddled together talking. They’re probably discussing my fragile state. They think I’m too traumatized to hang out at a stupid party. But I’m not the damaged person everyone thinks.

I refuse to be that girl.

I walk up behind the Twins and squeeze between them. “So when are we going to that party you were telling me about?”

   

“Something wonderful happened to me as I read this—I fell in love. Genuine, shattering, deep, heart-pounding love. Thank you, Kami Garcia, for Peyton and Owen. We need their story." —Jennifer Niven, New York Times bestselling author of All the Bright Places and Holding Up the Universe

     

HEAR IT FIRST

Order a digital or print edition of BROKEN BEAUTIFUL HEARTS by #1 New York Times bestselling author Kami Garcia and be the first to hear an exclusive announcement from Kami about her next book--a secret project her publisher is keeping under wraps! Fans of Beautiful Creatures, Dangerous Creatures, and The Legion series won't want to miss this exciting news!

This is a limited time offer! So hurry! Registration ends on February 28, 2018! You must register your preorder to receive the exclusive announcement from Kami!

https://a.pgtb.me/J61sNg

   
   
Kami Garcia is a #1 New York Times–bestselling and Bram Stoker–nominated author and the coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures and Dangerous Creatures novels. Her solo series, the Legion, includes the instant New York Times bestseller Unbreakable and its sequel, Unmarked. Kami is also the author of The X-Files Origins: Agent of Chaos and The Lovely Reckless. Kami was a teacher for seventeen years and coauthored her first novel on a dare from seven of her students. If she isn’t busy watching Supernatural, Kami can teach you how to escape from a pair of handcuffs or bake a Coca-Cola cake. Kami lives in Maryland with her family and their dogs, Spike and Oz.    

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Tumbler | Instagram | Snapchat | YouTube