THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER Blog Tour: Review & Q&A!

Woo hoo!! I'm extremely excited to be a part of Raincoast Books's Canadian blog tour for THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER! Some of you might already know that I am a HUGE fan of time travel...and I love contemporary YA romance, so this is an absolutely PERFECT fit! :D

Today I have my review and a little Q&A with the fabulous author of THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER, Harriet Rueter Hapgood! :D

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THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER
by Harriet Rueter Hapgood

Source: Received an ARC to participate in the blog tour and give an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press 
Release Date: May 3, 2016
Number of Pages: 295 (Hardcover)

Description from Goodreads:

This is what it means to love someone. This is what it means to grieve someone. It's a little bit like a black hole. It's a little bit like infinity.

Gottie H. Oppenheimer is losing time. Literally. When the fabric of the universe around her seaside town begins to fray, she's hurtled through wormholes to her past:

To last summer, when her grandfather Grey died. To the afternoon she fell in love with Jason, who wouldn't even hold her hand at the funeral. To the day her best friend Thomas moved away and left her behind with a scar on her hand and a black hole in her memory.

Although Grey is still gone, Jason and Thomas are back, and Gottie's past, present, and future are about to collide—and someone's heart is about to be broken.

With time travel, quantum physics, and sweeping romance, The Square Root of Summer is an exponentially enthralling story about love, loss, and trying to figure it all out, from stunning debut YA voice, Harriet Reuter Hapgood.

About the Author

Harriet Reuter Hapgood is a freelance fashion journalist and author of THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER (coming May 2016). Her first-ever professional writing credit was for Just Seventeen magazine, and she's been YA obsessed ever since. She likes burritos, cats, Gwyneth Paltrow and young adult fiction, which she plans to write more of, though she's also considering a PhD in Dawson’s Creek. Follow her on Twitter: @hapgoodness and on Instagram: @hapgo0dness if you like pictures of cats

Links: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Tumblr

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MY REVIEW:

I remember hearing about THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER months ago, and I was immediately intrigued! A contemporary romance...but with time travel. Super interesting! It's not often that contemporary and science fiction mix in that way without the sci-fi taking over, so I was extremely interested to see how the story was going to be handled, especially when you add in the fact that the main character, Gottie, is a math genius! Turns out that Harriet Reuter Hapgood handled it in a completely unique way, and once I started reading it, I couldn't stop!

There are so many things to love about THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER, but for me one of the best parts was the fact that the story is so mult-faceted! Right from the description, it's clear that this story isn't just about first love, it's also about loss, heartbreak, falling in love again, and time travel, too...and once I started reading, I realized that while parts of it were definitely light-hearted and fun, it was also an incredibly introspective story. I do love light and fluffy contemporary romances, but I also love the stories that wrench your heart a little bit and make you appreciate the things in your life, and this story really does that.

When the book starts, Gottie is so detached from life and she's spent the last year not really processing or moving on. I loved seeing her begin to open up to the world, and to embrace life again. I'm a huge time travel fan, and I'm so used to people actively traveling through time or unintentionally lapsing into time and making irrevocable changes when they do, but this story wasn't quite like that. In fact, I wasn't really sure what to expect with the whole "time travel" aspect of this story since it is still mostly a contemporary story, but I still really enjoyed it. There was a whole hypothetical and theoretical side to time travel that was extremely unique, and Harriet Reuter Hapgood described it all in a super interesting way! You definitely won't learn how to time travel yourself after reading THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER, but you will love reading about Gottie's experiences with it!

 I spent over three years working in a German deli, so I have to admit, all of the German elements to this story made me smile so freaking much...and they made me really nostalgic! I especially loved the little bit of German that slipped into the dialogue. :D Along with the time travel and German bits, I also really enjoyed the characters! While Gottie was pretty distracted with the whole weird time travel outbursts and wasn't always quite "in" the present, I really enjoyed her interactions with her family and friends when she was. I loved her dad, and the bits we saw of her grandpa, Grey, were so fantastic, too! I also loved her dynamics with her brother, even more so once she started to become less stuck in her past. Most of all, I really enjoyed seeing everything between her and Thomas though!!! Super duper cute and sweet...and I also loved her cat, Umlaut (hehe more German goodness! :D).

Overall, I absolutely adored THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER! I loved how the time travel aspects of the story complemented the contemporary parts, and I really loved Gottie's growth throughout the story. I'd recommend this one to contemporary romance fans, especially if you find the idea of time travel fascinating, too! 

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Q&A with Harriet

My Question: What inspired you to write a contemporary romance with time travel? And who's your favourite time traveler?

Harriet's Answer: I set myself a somewhat impossible task with my original goal for the book, which was to write about a girl who’d already had her big YA coming of age summer the previous year, and was now dealing with the aftermath. It meant a lot of the big storylines of the book were in the past, and that got me to thinking about time travel and memory and revisiting your past. Grief and mourning are exercises in memory and living in the past, so it all came together as a time travelly whole. When I decided that the love story was going to be someone from Gottie’s past, too, coming into her present, it all just made sense. At least to me! I think once you’ve had your first love and your first heartbreak, you begin to bring baggage from your past into every new crush, kiss, encounter, relationship. We’re the sum of our past, for better or worse – really, doesn’t all contemporary YA have some time travel in it? Just maybe not so literally… Time-travel wise, I’m a fan of Back to the Future and The Time Traveller’s Wife.

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What do you think?
Does THE SQUARE ROOT OF SUMMER sound like your kind of story?
What did you think of Harriet's answer to my question?
And who else absolutely LOVES time travel?

A GATHERING OF SHADOWS Blog Tour: Review & Q&A with Victoria Schwab! #AGOS #ADSOM #ShadesOfMagic

I am extremely excited to be a part of the blog tour for A GATHERING OF SHADOWS!! Today, I'm sharing my review for the much anticipated sequel to A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC, and I have a quick Q&A with V. E. (a.k.a. Victoria) Schwab!

A Gathering of Shadows (Shades of Magic #1)
by V.E. Schwab
Source: Received an ARC from Raincoast Books Canada in exchange for an honest review.
Publisher: Tor
Release Date: February 23, 2016
Number of Pages: 512 (Hardcover)


Description from Goodreads:

Four months have passed since the shadow stone fell into Kell’s possession. Four months since his path crossed with Delilah Bard. Four months since Rhy was wounded and the Dane twins fell, and the stone was cast with Holland’s dying body through the rift, and into Black London.

In many ways, things have almost returned to normal, though Rhy is more sober, and Kell is now plagued by his guilt. Restless, and having given up smuggling, Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila, who disappeared from the docks like she always meant to do. As Red London finalizes preparations for the Element Games—an extravagant international competition of magic, meant to entertain and keep healthy the ties between neighboring countries—a certain pirate ship draws closer, carrying old friends back into port.

But while Red London is caught up in the pageantry and thrills of the Games, another London is coming back to life, and those who were thought to be forever gone have returned. After all, a shadow that was gone in the night reappears in the morning, and so it seems Black London has risen again—meaning that another London must fall.

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REVIEW

I first read A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC a few months after its release, and as soon as I started it...I was hooked. I loved the magic, the characters, the world-building, the writing...absolutely everything! And to prepare myself for A GATHERING OF SHADOWS, I listened to the audiobook and I was once again blown away by the story. With the A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC audiobook fresh in my mind, I dug right into A GATHERING OF SHADOWS and it was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! :D

I loved getting to dive right back into Kell and Lila's world. It was just as wonderful as it was when I was first introduced to it. In fact, I think it got even better! I loved that I was a bit familiar with Kell's magical world, but like Lila, I was still finding things that were new and exciting for me...like the Essen Tasch (Element Games), an international magical competition where the best magic users from each country get together to compete! In A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC, we mostly just saw Kell and Holland use magic, but in A GATHERING OF SHADOWS we see so much more! You see people who can control single elements, two elements, three elements...and we even learn about the priests who can balance them all! I loved getting to see so many new perspectives of the magic in the Kell's world...and I really, really enjoyed the spectacle that was the Essen Tasch! The battles were so intense, and they really jumped off the page. :D

Along with the superb magical sequences, I loved that we just really got a greater understanding of magic itself! It's still pretty mysterious, but as Lila learned more, we learned more, and I really enjoyed that! I've also loved both Lila and Kell since A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC, and I just grew to love them more and more in A GATHERING OF SHADOWS! I love how stubborn they both are. I love how broody Kell is, and how Lila is determined to make her own way. They're both such fantastic characters! Most of all, I loved that we really got to see a lot of Rhy in this one! I loved his relationship with Kell in the first book, and it was even better in this one! They have the best bromance ever! And the new characters were fantastic! I doubt anyone can read A GATHERING OF SHADOWS without having very strong feelings for Alucard. He's quite the character. :P I also really enjoy how fluid sexuality is in this series⎯Rhy in particular intrigues me the most! I do definitely enjoy the sexual/romantic tension surrounding Lila and Kell too, but I have to admit that even though I really, really want them to get together, I love that the story really isn't about a romance between them. There's definitely a romantic element there, but the story is so much deeper than that, and I think that's pretty fantastic. :D

Magic, great characters...what else is there? Well, plot of course, and A GATHERING OF SHADOWS has a fantastic one! Told in alternating perspectives, you get to see this story from all sides. It was interesting to see how everything came together...and to try to anticipate what would happen! I'm not going to say anything else because I'm staying far from spoilers...but it is sooooooo GOOD! If you enjoyed A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC, I think you'll definitely love this one, too! :D

Overall, I absolutely LOVED A GATHERING OF SHADOWS! It was intense, captivating, and completely blew me away! I was so excited for it, and it definitely lived up to and exceeded all of my expectations!!! The characters were just as dynamic and amazing as they were in first book, and the story was amazing! As soon as I started reading, I was already dreading the end because I just want to live in Kell and Lila's world FOREVER! It's been just over a week since I finished reading...and I'm still reeling. And I'm definitely having Kell, Lila, and Rhy withdrawals. :P If you haven't started the SHADES OF MAGIC series yet, I definitely recommend it...especially if you love fantasy, magic, and intricate world-building!!!

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Q&A with V.E. (Victoria) Schwab!

If you lived in Kell's world and were from Red London, which element(s) would you like to have power over and why? And yes, Antari, is definitely an acceptable choice. :) 

Oh man, when I wrote a book about superpowers, I thought that would be the hardest question to answer, but it’s definitely elements. At one of end of the power spectrum we have Priests, who have a slight/gentle influence over all elements, allowing them to nurture the world, heal it and help it grow; at the other end we have Antari, who have near absolute control over all elements, and the ability to cast blood spells; and in between we have magicians who are proficient in one, two, and, rarely, three. Tempting as it is to answer Antari, we have to remember that things usually don’t go too well for Antari, being as rare as they are. But I know if I had magic I wouldn’t have Master Tieren’s subtle balance either. I think I’d probably say earth, but only because that’s actually a very broad category, ranging from metal workers all the way to stone and soil, and I think rocking a part-Magneto, part-earthshaker power would be pretty sweet.

 About Victoria Schwab

Victoria is the product of a British mother, a Beverly Hills father, and a southern upbringing. Because of this, she has been known to say "tom-ah-toes," "like," and "y'all."

She also tells stories.
She loves fairy tales, and folklore, and stories that make her wonder if the world is really as it seems.

Connect: Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

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Love, love love Victoria's answer to my question! I think I would love having any sort of magical ability, but I definitely agree with her, power over earth would be pretty amazing!!! I think I'd also really enjoy having power over water!! You could surf or play around without any kind of gear! And if it were raining, you wouldn't get wet unless you wanted to...of course, fire would be pretty awesome because you'd always be able to keep yourself warm. :P So many awesome possibilities!!! :D 

If you couldn't tell from my review, I LOVED A GATHERING OF SHADOWS! I'm still so excited to be a part of this blog tour, and I really can't recommend the SHADES OF MAGIC series enough!!!

What do you think?
Did you enjoy my review?
Are you excited for A GATHERING OF SHADOWS?
 Have you already read it?

And what did you think of my question and Victoria's answer?
What kind of elemental power would you like to have?

The Vast and Brutal Sea Blog Tour: Q&A with Zoraida Córdova

Today, I've got an extra special post for you! With the release date of Zoraida Córdova's The Vast and Brutal Sea approaching, I was lucky enough to be a part of the blog tour, and today she's let me ask her some questions...and her answers are pretty great if I do say so myself! ;D

Without further ado, here's my Q&A with Zoraida Córdova! My questions are in BLACK, and Zoraida's answers are in BLUE. :)

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Welcome, Zoraida! Thank you so much for answering my questions, and for stopping by my blog!

I just have to say that I am a huge fan of your Vicious Deep trilogy, and I absolutely love Tristan. I also find it extremely refreshing that you have a male narrator in your trilogy! Why did you choose to have a male main character? And did you have any inspiration for the epicness that is Tristan? ;)

When I decided I wanted to write the mer-story that I wanted to read, I knew I wanted to reverse the roles and have a merman. I was at Coney Island, tanning and reading, as you do. I remember checking out the lifeguard on duty who was young and beautiful and had these crazy blue eyes. He was totally a merdude ;) But really, I started to form Tristan’s backstory. Lifeguard. Coney Island (mermaid central). Urban setting with magical creatures. The return of the sea court. A wave. It all clicked.


Along with a fantastic main character, you’ve created an elaborate world for the mermaids embedded within our own. How did you craft such a unique world, and if you had any inspiration, where did it come from?

I had a friend tell me to write the mermaid story I wanted to read. I wanted to have a monarchy structure, and I wanted there to be a quest. These are tropes that are very familiar. Plus, I grew up on Disney. Other than that, I came up with my own mythology for the creation of merpeople. Why are there so many “sightings” and stories of merfolk ALL OVER THE WORLD? Because they travel on the Sea Court’s Toliss Island, duh. When the island arrives, only the members of the sea court who are granted the ability to shift back and forth between fins and feet can go inland. The Sea King’s trident is basically what keeps merpeople from going crazy and murdering ALL THE HUMANS.
 

With The Vast and Brutal Sea releasing shortly, how does it feel to be finished your Vicious Deep Trilogy?

Equal parts relieved, sad, and terrified. Relived because Tristan’s journey needs to come to an end. Sad because I really do love these characters. I want to write more about them. Terrified because I want people to love the ending. I hope I did these storylines justice.


What is your writing process like? Do you listen to music, brainstorm, etc.?

I sit on my couch. Type for a long time. Go on Twitter and Facebook. Then I move down to the floor (my poor back). When I feel stuck I do listen to music. It’s a great auditory bidet. Sorry, that’s a little gross. I’d like to think that I set goals. I’m all, YEAH 5K WORDS OR BUST! And then I have a measly 400 words. 


Now that we’ve learned a bit about your process, do you have any tips for other aspiring authors?

 It’s okay to write a measly 400 words. Write any words. Get them down on paper. And by paper, I mean your word document because chances are you won’t be able to read your own handwriting later on.

Read everything, and write always.


As a huge booklover, I am always looking for more books to read, so do you have any recommendations?

If you haven’t read Holly Black’s Urban Fairy Tale series (Tithe, Valiant, Ironside), then do. Amerlia Atwater-Rhode’s Kiesha’ra series is great if you love shapeshifter and high fantasy.

Gretchen McNeil’s Get Even Trilogy is on my HURRY UP AND RELEASE Goodreads list for fans of horror.


Finally, now that your trilogy is finished, what do you have planned next?

Right now I’m working on an NA contemporary romance about a college drop-out and a celebrity chef set in Boston. It’s called Luck on the Line and it’ll be published by Diversion Books on 11/10/14.

As for YA, I’m dabbling in the same magical Brooklyn as The Vicious Deep, but from other magical creatures.

About the Author:

Zoraida Córdova was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, where she learned to speak English by watching Disney’s The Little Mermaid and Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker on repeat. Her favorite things are sparkly like merdudes, Christmas, and New York City at night.


Links:  Twitter | Author Facebook | Series Facebook | Website | Tumblr | Series Tumblr | YouTube | Goodreads

THE VAST AND BRUTAL SEA,

 the final book in The Vicious Deep Trilogy, 

comes out July 1st!!!

Buy links: Indie Bound | B&N | Kobo | Books of Wonder

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Also, check out Zoraida's pre-order giveaway for The Vast and Brutal Sea!! :D

How the giveaway works: 

All you have to do it pre-order The Vast & Brutal Sea OR order a paperback copy of The Savage Blue any time until July 8th and you’re entered into the contest! After that everything else are BONUS points. Just remember to save your receipt to claim your prize! (INTERNATIONAL).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Is anyone else super duper excited for The Vast and Brutal Sea?

Did you enjoy the Q&A with Zoraida?

And if you haven't started The Vicious Deep Trilogy yet,
did the Q&A make you want to?

Hard As It Gets Book Blitz: Question & Answer with Laura Kaye & Review! #Review #QandA #LauraKaye #HardInk

In honour of the release of Hard As It Gets today, I've got an awesome Q&A with author Laura Kaye provided to me by the publisher! They've asked some fantastic questions, so I'm excited to share them with you! :D If you keep reading, you'll also find my review for Hard As It Gets...which I totally loved. ;D

Q&A WITH LAURA KAYE

HARD AS IT GETS is one steamy read! How did you first get into writing?

Thanks so much! And thanks for having me here! I’ve been a writer all my life. I’m a historian by training, so writing non-fiction was a part of my job for the fifteen years I worked as a college professor. But I started writing fiction in 2008 in kind of an unusual way. I hit my head on July 4, 2008. I didn’t think much of it that day, but soon after I realized I’d really hurt myself, and it turned out I had a minor traumatic brain injury. As I recovered, I was filled with an amazing urge to be creative, so I started taking guitar lessons (still not very good at that!) and wrote my first novel in 12 weeks (fortunately, I’m better at that LOL!). The experience of writing that first book was truly transformative. It was what I was supposed to be doing, so I revised that book until it sold and kept writing new ones. And I haven’t looked back since!

Why did you choose to write romance?

I had been an avid reader of paranormal romance for years at that point, so I wrote what I loved. But I also picked romance—unconsciously, I think—because to me it’s an incredibly hopeful genre. Romance stories are inherently stories about people who can’t find love or think they don’t deserve it who overcome the odds and find it in the end. In the years leading up to starting writing, I experienced a number of very hard personal losses, so writing in this genre was one way I worked through those issues.

What does “Hard Ink” refer to? What importance do tattoos play in your story?

Hard Ink is the name of the Rixey brothers’ tattoo shop in the Hard Ink series. Nick and Jeremy Rixey are co-owners, though Nick (the hero of book one, Hard As It Gets) prefers to be more of a silent partner, despite Jeremy’s efforts to put Nick’s artistic talents to work. In this series, tattoos are a way people remember, pay penance, or highlight what’s important to them. The act of creating permanent marks on skin has deep meaning to them. And the shop creates a gritty setting where diverse kinds of people meet and interact in the series. I really love it!

Describe Becca—what do you love most about her? And Nick?

I’d love to! Because I really loved writing these characters!

Becca Merritt is smart and strong and honest and protective. I really loved the way she was willing to stand up for those she loves, even against people and forces who might be stronger and even a little scary. There’s a scene in particular when she dresses down Nick’s Special Forces teammates after a fist fight where I was particularly cheering for her! LOL

Nick Rixey is, omg, so freaking hot, you guys! He’s brooding and tortured and honorable and when he falls he falls  so hard. I especially loved Nick’s mix of hard, alpha edges with his artistic side. When Nick shows Becca what her idea for a tattoo might look like on her skin, it’s just scorching!

What significance does the military play in the book?

Military themes are central to the whole Hard Ink series. The military isn’t just sexy window dressing nor is it just there to provide an intriguing backstory. The prior SF guys are this series are entirely defined by their military experience good and bad. It informs their identity, their sense of honor and duty, their view of the world, and of course gives them the skill set required to fight the battles they face in the series. The overall series mystery the characters are working to solve revolves around a military conspiracy in Afghanistan, so even though they’re out of the Army, the military themes are central.

If you could describe your book in a 140 character tweet, what would it be?

In #HardAsItGets, an ex-soldier joins forces w/his dead commander's daughter to regain his tarnished honor & save her brother from a gang

Is there a particular author or book that has influenced your writing?

There are a number of authors that have influenced me, but if I had to pick one it would be J.R. Ward. A lot of what I know about how to write sexy, authentic male point of view comes from reading her books. And I definitely learned the importance of a good bromance to a romance novel from her Black Dagger Brotherhood series, too. Given my ginormous fangirling, you can only imagine how flipping excited I was when this happened:

“Edgy, sexy, and full of suspense! A great read from a great new author!”

~J.R. Ward on Hard As It Gets

You guys, I bawled like a baby in the middle of a huge workshop put on by my publisher. For real. LOL

What advice would you give aspiring writers looking to get into the publishing industry?

Here’s my advice:

1) Write, write, write. You can’t revise what you haven’t written and you can’t sell what you haven’t written. And the psychological and emotional boost you’ll get from writing “The End” for the first time cannot be overestimated.

2) Revise, revise, revise. That first time you type “The End”? Yeah, you’re nowhere near done. Your book will need to be edited, by you, several times before you ever put it in front of an agent or editor. You get one shot with them, so don’t waste it by not showing them your very best and most polished work.

3) Find critique partners. And your mom, siblings, and best friend do not count (unless you’re really lucky, like me, and your best friend happens t also be a professional author). You need other aspiring writers in your genre who will give you honest but constructive feedback about how to improve your manuscript. Let them catch all the embarrassing goofs and plot holes you thought you caught before it gets to an agent or editor.

4) Want to be a professional, then act it. And by that I mean join the professional organization(s) of the genre in which you write. Through them you will find classes to help hone your craft, critique partner match-ups, networking opportunities, calls for submission, and other opportunities invaluable to breaking into publishing.

5) Don’t give up. You will hear way more no’s than yeses, particularly early in your writing career. Stick with it. Believe in yourself. Give yourself one day to wallow in the rejection and eat a bunch of chocolate and then get right back on the horse. If your first book doesn’t sell, chalk that up to learning and write a second.

What can fans of HARD AS IT GETS look forward to next?

I’m currently writing four series: two contemporary (Hard Ink, Heroes) and two paranormal (Hearts of the Anemoi, Vampire Warrior Kings). I’ll have books from all four of those releasing in 2014. My next release is Hard As You Can (Hard Ink #2) coming 2/25/14!

About Hard As It Gets:

Five dishonored soldiers.

Former Special Forces.

One last mission.

These are the men of Hard Ink.

Tall, dark, and lethal...

Trouble just walked into Nicholas Rixey's tattoo parlor. Becca Merritt is warm, sexy, wholesome--pure temptation to a very jaded Nick. He's left his military life behind to become co-owner of Hard Ink Tattoo, but Becca is his ex-commander's daughter. Loyalty won't let him turn her away. Lust has plenty to do with it too.

With her brother presumed kidnapped, Becca needs Nick. She just wasn't expecting to want him so much. As their investigation turns into all-out war with an organized crime ring, only Nick can protect her. And only Becca can heal the scars no one else sees.

Desire is the easy part. Love is as hard as it gets. Good thing Nick is always up for a challenge...

Read Chapter 1 of Hard As It Gets

Buy at Amazon | B&N | iTunes

About Laura Kaye:

Laura is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over a dozen books in contemporary and paranormal romance. Growing up, Laura’s large extended family believed in the supernatural, and family lore involving angels, ghosts, and evil-eye curses cemented in Laura a life-long fascination with storytelling and all things paranormal. She lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Newsletter SignUp

 You can find more information about Laura Kaye's newest releases HERE.

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REVIEW

I have to admit that the extremely delicious cover did initially attract me to Hard As It Gets, but it was the description and the promise of an intriguing story that got me to actually pick it up, and I definitely wasn't disappointed! :D

Hard As It Gets was full of action, but it was also full of character growth, and some seriously amazing chemistry between the two main characters, Becca and Nick (a.k.a. Rixey). Right from the moment Becca and Nick are introduced, the chemistry is palpable and boy is it sexy and hard to resist! Before reading Hard As It Gets, I had read Laura Kaye's Hearts in Darkness, so I did expect some steamy parts...and I definitely got them with this one, too!

This book is more than just about sex though. I loved that the characters connection was so real, and although they hadn't known each other for very long, I could completely believe and understand their strong attraction for each other and enjoyed the progression of their relationship. I also just thought that Becca and Nick complimented each other extremely well, and I especially loved that while Nick protected Becca, he also knew that she was capable of taking care of herself and that she was stronger than she looked. The relationships between siblings were pretty fantastic in Hard As It Gets, too. I absolutely loved Jeremy and Nick's relationship, and I loved seeing Becca interact with Nick's brother, Jeremy, too. I also loved getting to see Becca and Charlie's relationship, and I really admired her for doing all that she could to find out what happened to him, and to help him. Plus, Nick and his buddies were seriously fantastic in their search...it was actually incredibly fascinating to read about it all! :D And the dog...I'm a softie for dogs in books, and this one has a really adorable one. :)

Overall, I loved Hard As It Gets! I thought that the romance was fantastic, but I loved that the story was about more than romance, too. It was about family, brotherhood, learning to trust, finding love and acceptance, and doing anything you can for those that you love. It was a wonderful story, and I can't wait to read the next book in the series, Hard As You Can! I'd recommend this one to fans of steamy reads who want their story to be about more than sex, and if you're a fan of a bit of mystery and action, you'll like it even more.

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What do you think?

Do you want to read Hard As It Gets?

And are you a fan of steamy reads?

Book Blitz: Shine Not Burn by Elle Casey (Q&A, & Giveaway!)

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Shine Not Burn by Elle Casey  
Publication date: June 30th 2013
Genre: NA Romance

Synopsis:

IT HAPPENED IN VEGAS. I can't be held responsible. Things that happen there are supposed to stay there, right? Right? Yeeeah. Not so much. ... Andie's just days away from tying the knot, but there's just ooooone little glitch. Apparently, she's already married. Or someone with her name is married to a guy out in Oregon of all places, and the courthouse won't issue her a marriage license until it's all cleared up. Tripping her way through cow pies and country songs to meet up with a man who gets around places on horseback is her very last idea of how to have a good time, but if she's going to get married, make partner at the firm, and have two point five kids before she's thirty-five, she needs to get to the bottom of this snafu and fix it quick ... before her fiance finds out and everything she's been working toward goes up in flames.

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17973653-shine-not-burn

Purchase: Amazon

*** RIGHT NOW THERE IS A SPECIAL $0.99 PROMO GOING ON FOR SHINE NOT BURN! I already ordered my copy...so if you know you want to read this one, too, don't miss your chance to get this awesome deal. ;D

AUTHOR BIO

Elle Casey is a full-time writer of New Adult and Young Adult titles in several genres, including romance, urban fantasy, sci-fi dystopian, and action-adventure. She's an American girl who's been living in southern France with her husband and three children since 2010. She loves chatting with her readers, so feel free to drop her a line.

LINKS: Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

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A Quick Q & A with Elle Casey

1. You started out writing in YA. What brought you over to New Adult?

I've been a reader of new adult titles even before they were called 'new adult'. And I love the age group it covers. 18-30 years old is such a great time in life, isn't it? I mean, it's when you sow your wild oats, learn about yourself in the context of the whole world and not just your family and friends; it's where you figure out who you're going to be. The adult-formative years I guess you could call it. And the sex part is awesome too, I won't lie. You can only get so sexy with a YA book, so as a writer, I have to hold back. In NA, I don't have to do that. It can be passionate, raw, sometimes awkward and full of bad decisions, but it can be REAL. I guess that's what I love about NA most … it's raw and real.

2. What's your favorite part of being a writer? 

My readers. Hands down, it's the readers. I get emails and messages every day from devoted fans, and I can't express how much that means to me. There are readers out there who've set up book blogs just because they were so excited about my books, people who make it a point to promote my books on their Facebook pages and Twitter just because they want to share the reader-love, and whole families who are reading my series and discussing them at dinner. It just blows my mind that people would be so generous and so involved in my made-up worlds. Recently I had a fan dress as one of my characters at a comic con event. I also occasionally get a very heart-warming message about how my writing has changed someone's life - caused them to finally start reading or to go to college. To me, that's the sign of a life well-lived - that I've somehow inspired another person to reach for something they want in life that they thought they didn't have a chance at having before.

3. What's the most important element in a romance in your opinion? 

A sexy guy. Seriously, he just needs to be sexy as hell, and that doesn't mean sexy can't come in different packages. For example, in the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the MC, Ian, is very understated and shy, but man, he rocked my world. He reminds me a lot of my husband, actually. On the other hand you have your angsty fighters ... guys who you'd never let into your world in real life but who are safe to fall for in books. Travis from Beautiful Disaster comes to mind. Boy, did he cause a lot of fuss in the reader world! Chemistry comes in all kinds of packages, which is awesome, but the chemistry has to be there or the book falls flat for me.

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GIVEAWAY

- International

- 1 Winner will get an ebook of Shine Not Burn in the format of their choice

- Winner will be chosen using Rafflecopter and contacted via email

- Ends July 10th @ 11:59 PM (MST)

TO ENTER FILL OUT THE RAFFLECOPTER BELOW: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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What do you think?

Does Shine Not Burn sound like your kind of story?
And what did you think of Elle's answers?

Blog Tour: Run the Risk by Lori Foster - Giveaway, Excerpt, and Q&A!

Excerpt:

His gaze zeroed in on her mouth. “That’s why you’re flushed?”

Oh, God. More heat rushed to her skin’s surface. “Really, Mr. Stark—”

“Logan,” he corrected softly. “Say it for me. Just once. Then I’ll go.”

He wanted to…seduce her?

So it appeared. And worse, he succeeded just by presence alone. “Logan,” she agreed through stiff lips. “I need to go.”

You can find the continuation of this excerpt tomorrow, October 27, on My Book Addiction and More.  

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Author Q and A:

Image from Book Trib

1. What’s your guilty pleasure?I don’t really feel guilty about it, but I LOVE horror movies and action movies. I go to the theater at least once a week, often twice if there are movies I want to see. A bad horror movie is more entertaining to me that a perfect drama. And there are very few chic flicks I enjoy. Popcorn, cola, violence and blood – right up my alley. And if they throw in a sexy Alpha guy, I’m there.
   
   
2.  If you weren’t a writer, what would be your career?I doubt I’d have a career. Before publishing, I spent much of my time as a stay at home mom. I did babysitting, and I cleaned apartment buildings and other people’s houses. Now that my kids are all grown, maybe I’d have found something intriguing to do. But I have no way of knowing that now.
   
3. What do you do when you are not writing?
   I go to the movies. Read in the evening. Spend the day on the lake, swimming, sunning, skiing, boating. I love the outdoors, so when I have enough time between books, we usually try to do something with nature – Hocking Hills, The Natural Bridge, parks, etc... I enjoy my large, extended family a lot, so we hold a lot of afternoon parties where everyone gathers, chats, eats... we have fun.
   The thing is, I’m rarely not writing. My Muse tends to give me fits if I go too long between storylines. So I fit in the non-writing activities by force of will – and otherwise I just give my Muse free rein.

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GIVEAWAY!!!!

- US/Canada Only

- 1 Winner will get a copy of Run the Risk
- Ends on November 10th at 12:01 AM (EST).

- Winner will be chosen using Rafflecopter and will have 48 hours to claim their prize.

To enter just fill out the Rafflecopter below: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

To continue following the Run the Risk blog tour, go to Book Trib's schedule here. You can also enter some giveaways there! :D

Thanks for entering! Good luck! :D

Triangles Blog Tour: Ellen Hopkins Q & A!

 Today, Ellen Hopkin's first adult novel, Triangles is released! I was asked to participate in the Blog Tour for it's release, and so I got to ask Ellen 5 questions, and today, I get to show you the fabulous answers that she gave! :D 

So, here's my Q and A with Ellen Hopkins:

What inspired you to start writing your books in poetic verse?

Ellen Hopkins: I started my first novel, CRANK, in prose, but the voice was all wrong. Put the book away and went to a writers’ conference, where I saw Sonya Sones (another verse novelist) speak. I’ve written poetry my whole life, and decided to give it a try. Then I found a talent for it.



Is writing in poetic verse difficult? And do you have a way to keep track of your storyline as you write it?

EH: The challenge is making every word count. Giving just enough detail to allow readers to “color in” the rest. It has become second nature at this point, so story flows onto the page as verse for me. I don’t outline or plot, except in very vague ways. My stories are really about my characters. They speak to me in verse, I guess.



Your books have unique formatting, is it difficult to do, and how much control do you have with their finished format?

EH: Some of the formatting is extremely difficult to write, especially the poems with the smaller poems to the side. I have complete control over the finished format, and in fact, write to trim size so the verse looks exactly the way I want it to, start to finish. Design used to hate me. Now they’ve come to enjoy the challenge, I think.



I was hesitant to try out poetic verse at first, and I know there are others out there that are also unsure about it. What would you say to those people to encourage them to try it?


EH: Just dive in! It doesn’t really read much differently and once you get past the first couple of pages, you’ll get over the idea that it’s verse. The story is what’s important and with no extraneous language to take you out of the story, it will feel like you’re living it, rather than having it told to you.



How different was it writing an adult novel compared to writing your young adults novels?

EH: I really didn’t find it all that different. I feel like I channel my characters, once I know who they are. So it was just channeling characters experiencing adult situations rather than teen situations. I was a bit freer to elevate language and to write sex without having to consider my audience so specifically.

Here's a video of Ellen Hopkins talking about Triangles:

I love Ellen's answers! And I agree with what she said about poetic verse putting you in the story, Triangles definitely did that for me! :D I hope that these questions and answers made you excited to try one of Ellen's books, and also to read Triangles!

Happy Reading!!!

♪♫ Ambur