a Rafflecopter giveaway
Endless Day of Literary Ecstasy will be giving away a print copy of Clint Morey's new book, When I Fall in Love.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
GIVEAWAY- Copy of Clint Morey's novel, 'When I Fall in Love'
Enter the Giveaway of When I Fall in Love
using this Rafflecopter form! Starts August 28th and goes through September 9th. Please note this is for US mailing addresses only.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Endless Day of Literary Ecstasy will be giving away a print copy of Clint Morey's new book, When I Fall in Love.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Endless Day of Literary Ecstasy will be giving away a print copy of Clint Morey's new book, When I Fall in Love.
When I Fall in Love by Clint Morey
Author: Clint Morey
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Published Date: July 1, 2012
Format: Paperback & Kindle
Buy on Amazon: Paperback or Kindle
Synopsis from Back Cover:
Amy Prescott is just your ordinary, everyday high school senior -- beautiful, brilliant, athletic, able to pick the hunk of her choice, and a scholarship to Harvard nearly in her hands.
Okay, maybe not so
ordinary.
Her perfectly planned future starts to unravel when she has to care for her grandparents in Montana. As the family fights over who gets what part of the estate, Grandpa tells Amy the story of how he met his wife in Vietnam.
But Amy has more pressing concerns. Is her boyfriend seeing someone else? How does she put off the Montana boy who takes an interest in her? And then there's Harvard.
Amy doesn't need any of this. Not now. Her life is planned. It's a perfect plan.
At least it was.
My Thoughts:
Clint Morey's When I Fall in Love is a captivating young adult novel. It has a healthy mixture of romance, comedy, and tenderness. Amy, the main character, is the perfect high school student on her way to earning a spot at Harvard. Her parents have meticulously planned out Amy's life to ensure she is accepted, from Cello lessons, to Physics tutoring, and even which sports Amy will play and dominate. However, everything is put on hold when Amy's grandfather has a stroke.
Amy dreads flying to Montana, where she hasn't visited in five years. Once she gets there things are not as they once where. Her grandmother has Alzheimer's and her grandfather is too weak to take care of her after his stroke. After witnessing the devotion and love between her grandparents, Amy decides she will rally behind her grandfather in his attempts to keep his family together. As Amy's bond strengthens with her grandfather, he tells her the story of how he and Lynn met and fell in love, many years before.
I really like how Morey presented Alzheimer's and how it can differently affect family members. When I Fall in Love views the disease from many aspects. Grandpa Robert lives for the moments when Lynn, his wife, makes a brief appearance from her own little world. He has kept things the same in the house to help her feel more comfortable, and is always there for her. Amy's mother, aunt, and uncle decide that things can not remain as they currently are. Instead of being mature about matters, the siblings act more like children. After their father has a stroke they immediately want to put their mother in a nursing home and have the estate signed over to them. They act very selfish and it seems at times that they are looking out for only themselves and their inheritance. Amy has not been around her grandmother since Alzheimer's took over her life. She takes it upon her self to be there for her grandmother and grandfather. She wants them to remain together and will sacrifice whatever is needed to see that happen.
Clint Morey's When I Fall in Love is a very quick read at only 149 pages. Once I started the humor and witty dialogue pulled me in. The scenes with Amy and her boy troubles are very funny, as well as the flashbacks of Robert and Lynn in Vietnam. I definitely recommend Clint Morey's When I Fall in Love to fans of Young Adult literature. You will find yourself laughing and tearing up at this poignant novel.
Clint Morey has provided me with a complimentary copy of his book, When I Fall in Love, for the purpose of review.
Clint Morey has graciously donated a copy of his novel, When I Fall in Love, for
a giveaway. This giveaway will be running from August 28th-September 9th. Enter to win the copy on the Rafflecopter
form on the above Giveaway Post.
Monday, August 20, 2012
Guest Post & Interview of Author Bryan K. Johnson
On August 14th, Bryan Johnson's novel Yield (Book One of the Armageddia Series) was released. I am very excited to present to you both a Guest Blog Post by Bryan, and an interview I conducted with him. Enjoy!!!!!
It seems like many writers these days are confronted with the same conundrum of continuance. Should I turn my story into a series? At face value, it's a simple enough question. The word "trilogy" can cause a million possibilities to fire inside the depths of our synaptic web, tracing down through dynamic characters and immersive worlds all painted in glorious verbal detail. There are certainly enough success stories of formerly unknown writers finding fame and fortune with a captivating book series: J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter, Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga, Suzanne Collins and the Hunger Games. Audiences and critics alike enjoy multi-part story arcs, often bringing unparalleled success to their creators.
I have also set out down that same long and layered path, taken by many but finished by few. My debut novel, YIELD, is book one of the chillingly intense, shockingly unforgettable, (enter your own superlative here) Armageddia trilogy. The only problem? It's not all written yet.
Marketing a series of ethereal ideas without the concrete parts already in hand is a very real challenge for new writers. How do we know if the first story is going to be well received? What if we haven't been lucky enough to find a publisher with the patience to see our series through? What if there is too long of a gap between releases and all of that hard fought momentum is lost?
The highly competitive book business can be an unforgiving place. Having even one novel pop on the charts as a new writer is hard enough, let alone trying to ride your own coattails years later when all of the intended companion pieces are finally done.
Being new to the industry, I've realized I really don't have a bulletproof answer to the sequel question—not one that applies to everyone. The answer, just like the stories themselves, depends largely on the motivations and commitment of their authors.
My advice, from that place somewhere between hope and disappointment in my gut, is this:
If you are certain beyond a shadow of a doubt that you will complete your series—even if book one is an abysmal failure, even if the critics hate it, even if everything else in your life crumbles away—if you are that passionate about your story and have a clear vision for what it can be, then I say do it. Commit to it, and don't give up on your idea even if Dante's inferno opens wide and threatens to swallow you whole. It might just take that kind of commitment and sacrifice to make it.
On the other hand, if you are just testing the waters and trying to get a foothold in the writing world any way you can, you might be better off having several weapons in your literary arsenal. A good writer is a good writer, regardless of the specific story. Having a few finished manuscripts in your hip pocket to show your versatility and style to a prospective agent or publisher may just get you that shot. There can be strength in playing the numbers. Not everyone will like a particular series concept. And if you put all of your eggs in that one basket, your writing career may get poached before you've even had a chance to hatch.
For a special sneak peek at my own sequel, go to: www.armageddia.com. I've posted an exclusive excerpt on my blog there from book two of the Armageddia Series. Book one, YIELD, will be available August 14th in paperback and e-book formats.
Happy writing! (...and writing....... and writing..........................)
At its core, Yield is a journey of self-destruction and redemption. When our country's entire infrastructure is crippled by a brutal attack, the survivors are thrown into an unthinkable world full of chaos and anarchy. We're thrust right into the middle of that madness with the characters, without understanding what happened or why.
Yield is a story about that shift between the life we know and the very dark world that emerges from the ashes. If everything you knew suddenly changed in a flash of hatred and violence, how would you react? What would you be capable of to protect the ones you love? Yield's characters come face to face with those extremes of humanity, trying to overcome their own savagery and demons while fighting to survive.
Before becoming a novel, Yield actually started its life as a screenplay. I thought the concept made for a very visual type of story, so I initially fleshed out Yield in a traditional screenplay format. Putting it together as a screenplay actually helped me quite a bit while writing to better visualize the scenes, structure the story, and tighten up my dialogue. But screenplays have to be so concise and heavily formatted that it really limited the emotion of the story. I received a lot of feedback from prospective agents and production companies that the screenplay was overwritten and just too literary. So I took a deep breath and jumped in with both feet to expand Yield out into a novel. It took a few more years, but was extremely liberating to be able to flesh out how my characters felt and thought—how the fear inside them was palpable and crippling. It allowed me to really explore my own style of writing and create a much deeper story.
Books two and three of the Armageddia Series are receiving their own flashes of inspiration, but for Yield, it was a singular experience. About six years ago, I was on a plane from San Francisco to Bend and the fog was so thick over the bay that it completely blotted out the sky. As we took off above the cloud bank, everything just disappeared beneath me. Mankind and all our worries seemed to fade into the grey. I wondered what would happen if the world changed at that very moment. What if the life I knew didn't exist when I landed? What if my world died somewhere under those clouds?
That flight started my entire thought process for the Armageddia Series, and even turned into one of my favorite scenes in Yield. As our main character, disgraced firefighter Devin Bane, takes off on the way towards his own interview, everything he knows changes while he's in the air. Devin crashes headfirst into a chaos he doesn't understand, fighting not only to get back to his wife and kids, but also to protect the other survivors now looking to him for a leadership he wants no part of.
That's a hard one. I'm partial to each of the characters in Yield for different reasons, but Devin Bane is probably my most interesting one. He is an exceedingly complicated protagonist, flawed with addiction, full of razor-sharp skepticism, and with an almost constant sense of conflicted purpose. He doesn't want to be a leader, yet his instincts are to rise up when needed. His unrestrained and often harsh sense of humor can cut you down in an instant, but his charm can also brighten the darkest of days. Devin is at a crossroads in his life and still trying to find himself. His biggest problem is what he finds lurking in the shadows.
I integrated some contemporary news headlines into the narrative to give it a greater sense of relevance and realism. Aside from that, I really wanted to take the story down a very dark and dramatic road—one that was uniquely gripping and terrifyingly real. Everything is just a step or two past where we are now. I love science fiction and fantasy, but didn't want Yield to have that fantastical and unbelievable quality to it. I wanted the story to feel horrifyingly possible in every way.
I lead a very scattered and chaotic life. I'm a moonlight writer with a busy day job, spending a lot of time on the road in addition to working 50+ hours a week. I write when I can, while also balancing time with my wife and kids when I'm at home. I was actually still writing Yield while finishing up a very challenging MBA program, too. I don't know how I juggled everything, but somehow you just find a way when you're passionate about it. Lately I've been more focused on the marketing of Yield, but when I'm in creation mode, I'll write in the evenings until the ideas stop flowing. No word or page goal. I think creativity is hard to force a finite number on. It just happens, in the quantity and breadth it chooses to bestow.
I like to read everything from Dan Brown's thrillers and Tom Clancy's military ops novels, to sci-fi, fantasy and dystopians. I'm a big fan of multi-book story arcs like Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Eddings's Belgariad. I also just finished reading the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and was really impressed by the author. She created such an intense pace through the entire three-book series. I think I read each one in about a day. They were just too good to be put down. I love books like that.
I loved exploring the science fiction worlds of Tolkien, Brian Jacques, and David Eddings growing up. I was always amazed by the feeling that a good book series could give you. I remember as I finished up one of Eddings's five-part story lines in high school, having this almost overwhelming feeling of disappointment that it was over. I didn't want the characters that I had been through so much with to leave my mind. Great writers make us feel like we truly know the characters, and can bring them to life in a way that is so real and personal. We feel their fears. Laugh at their triumphs. Cry at their pain. I started writing in high school at first to continue some of those incredible stories that I just didn't want to end. I moved on to graphic novels, toying with the idea of being a comic book illustrator, then on to screenplays and finally my debut novel, Yield.
I think the biggest challenge for me was the process after all the writing was done. Becoming an author isn't simply putting together a compelling story with a unique hook, then watching the floodgates of success open wide. Becoming a published author with tangible numbers is far more difficult than writing the story itself. There are a lot of other very talented writers out there, all competing with one another to reach prospective readers. New writers must be well versed in social media, able to network and build connections, be willing to invest their own time and resources, maintain engaging presences on a host of different platforms, and always be looking for ways to market themselves and their brand to new customers. I have an MBA in marketing, so thankfully I have a bit of experience in that arena. But trying to build credibility and a following takes time. New writers start at ground zero, regardless of how great you think your book might be. Don't get discouraged, but don't underestimate that either.
Thanks for featuring me! It's been a lot fun so far and the Armageddia journey is just beginning. Buckle up!
For a special sneak peek at book two of the series, check out my blog at www.armageddia.com. I've posted an exclusive excerpt there. Yield, book one of the Armageddia Series, will be released on August 14th in paperback and e-book formats. I hope you all enjoy it!
~Candace
Title: Yield
Author: Bryan K. Johnson
Publisher: American Book Publishing
Published Date: August 14, 2012
Format: Paperback & Kindle
Buy on Amazon: Paperback
or Kindle
Author Website: http://www.armageddia.com/
Synopsis:
Ex-fire chief Devin Bane rises above the thick clouds for an interview
in Seattle and the promise of a better life. Packing up his carry-on
items for their descent into the city, Devin is blinded by a distant
flash, followed by the screams and chaos of a crash landing.
Outside the plane's wreckage, a new nightmare surrounds him. Seattle's iconic skyline is gone.
Searching for answers as he flees through the ruins, Devin and a handful of survivors are surrounded by the most primitive side of human nature. Plunged into the darkness of a broken society, their tattered souls are each tested by the horrors they face. Even if Devin can escape the city, a far worse danger now blocks his path back home . . .
Back to his family and the dawning of a changed world.
Searching for answers as he flees through the ruins, Devin and a handful of survivors are surrounded by the most primitive side of human nature. Plunged into the darkness of a broken society, their tattered souls are each tested by the horrors they face. Even if Devin can escape the city, a far worse danger now blocks his path back home . . .
Back to his family and the dawning of a changed world.
"To sequel or not to sequel..."
by Guest Writer Bryan K. Johnson
It seems like many writers these days are confronted with the same conundrum of continuance. Should I turn my story into a series? At face value, it's a simple enough question. The word "trilogy" can cause a million possibilities to fire inside the depths of our synaptic web, tracing down through dynamic characters and immersive worlds all painted in glorious verbal detail. There are certainly enough success stories of formerly unknown writers finding fame and fortune with a captivating book series: J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter, Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga, Suzanne Collins and the Hunger Games. Audiences and critics alike enjoy multi-part story arcs, often bringing unparalleled success to their creators.
I have also set out down that same long and layered path, taken by many but finished by few. My debut novel, YIELD, is book one of the chillingly intense, shockingly unforgettable, (enter your own superlative here) Armageddia trilogy. The only problem? It's not all written yet.
Marketing a series of ethereal ideas without the concrete parts already in hand is a very real challenge for new writers. How do we know if the first story is going to be well received? What if we haven't been lucky enough to find a publisher with the patience to see our series through? What if there is too long of a gap between releases and all of that hard fought momentum is lost?
The highly competitive book business can be an unforgiving place. Having even one novel pop on the charts as a new writer is hard enough, let alone trying to ride your own coattails years later when all of the intended companion pieces are finally done.
Being new to the industry, I've realized I really don't have a bulletproof answer to the sequel question—not one that applies to everyone. The answer, just like the stories themselves, depends largely on the motivations and commitment of their authors.
My advice, from that place somewhere between hope and disappointment in my gut, is this:
If you are certain beyond a shadow of a doubt that you will complete your series—even if book one is an abysmal failure, even if the critics hate it, even if everything else in your life crumbles away—if you are that passionate about your story and have a clear vision for what it can be, then I say do it. Commit to it, and don't give up on your idea even if Dante's inferno opens wide and threatens to swallow you whole. It might just take that kind of commitment and sacrifice to make it.
On the other hand, if you are just testing the waters and trying to get a foothold in the writing world any way you can, you might be better off having several weapons in your literary arsenal. A good writer is a good writer, regardless of the specific story. Having a few finished manuscripts in your hip pocket to show your versatility and style to a prospective agent or publisher may just get you that shot. There can be strength in playing the numbers. Not everyone will like a particular series concept. And if you put all of your eggs in that one basket, your writing career may get poached before you've even had a chance to hatch.
For a special sneak peek at my own sequel, go to: www.armageddia.com. I've posted an exclusive excerpt on my blog there from book two of the Armageddia Series. Book one, YIELD, will be available August 14th in paperback and e-book formats.
Happy writing! (...and writing....... and writing..........................)
Interview with Bryan K. Johnson
Author of Yield: Book 1 of the Armageddia Series
 |
| Bryan K. Johnson |
Q. Can you tell us a little something about YIELD?
At its core, Yield is a journey of self-destruction and redemption. When our country's entire infrastructure is crippled by a brutal attack, the survivors are thrown into an unthinkable world full of chaos and anarchy. We're thrust right into the middle of that madness with the characters, without understanding what happened or why.
Yield is a story about that shift between the life we know and the very dark world that emerges from the ashes. If everything you knew suddenly changed in a flash of hatred and violence, how would you react? What would you be capable of to protect the ones you love? Yield's characters come face to face with those extremes of humanity, trying to overcome their own savagery and demons while fighting to survive.
Q. Share something about yourself or your writing that you haven't told fans?
Before becoming a novel, Yield actually started its life as a screenplay. I thought the concept made for a very visual type of story, so I initially fleshed out Yield in a traditional screenplay format. Putting it together as a screenplay actually helped me quite a bit while writing to better visualize the scenes, structure the story, and tighten up my dialogue. But screenplays have to be so concise and heavily formatted that it really limited the emotion of the story. I received a lot of feedback from prospective agents and production companies that the screenplay was overwritten and just too literary. So I took a deep breath and jumped in with both feet to expand Yield out into a novel. It took a few more years, but was extremely liberating to be able to flesh out how my characters felt and thought—how the fear inside them was palpable and crippling. It allowed me to really explore my own style of writing and create a much deeper story.
Q. What inspired you to write the YIELD trilogy?
Books two and three of the Armageddia Series are receiving their own flashes of inspiration, but for Yield, it was a singular experience. About six years ago, I was on a plane from San Francisco to Bend and the fog was so thick over the bay that it completely blotted out the sky. As we took off above the cloud bank, everything just disappeared beneath me. Mankind and all our worries seemed to fade into the grey. I wondered what would happen if the world changed at that very moment. What if the life I knew didn't exist when I landed? What if my world died somewhere under those clouds?
That flight started my entire thought process for the Armageddia Series, and even turned into one of my favorite scenes in Yield. As our main character, disgraced firefighter Devin Bane, takes off on the way towards his own interview, everything he knows changes while he's in the air. Devin crashes headfirst into a chaos he doesn't understand, fighting not only to get back to his wife and kids, but also to protect the other survivors now looking to him for a leadership he wants no part of.
Q. Do you have a favorite scene and character in YIELD?
That's a hard one. I'm partial to each of the characters in Yield for different reasons, but Devin Bane is probably my most interesting one. He is an exceedingly complicated protagonist, flawed with addiction, full of razor-sharp skepticism, and with an almost constant sense of conflicted purpose. He doesn't want to be a leader, yet his instincts are to rise up when needed. His unrestrained and often harsh sense of humor can cut you down in an instant, but his charm can also brighten the darkest of days. Devin is at a crossroads in his life and still trying to find himself. His biggest problem is what he finds lurking in the shadows.
Q. When writing YIELD, did you take anything from real life?
I integrated some contemporary news headlines into the narrative to give it a greater sense of relevance and realism. Aside from that, I really wanted to take the story down a very dark and dramatic road—one that was uniquely gripping and terrifyingly real. Everything is just a step or two past where we are now. I love science fiction and fantasy, but didn't want Yield to have that fantastical and unbelievable quality to it. I wanted the story to feel horrifyingly possible in every way.
Q. How do you write? Do you have a set routine each day? A word or page goal?
I lead a very scattered and chaotic life. I'm a moonlight writer with a busy day job, spending a lot of time on the road in addition to working 50+ hours a week. I write when I can, while also balancing time with my wife and kids when I'm at home. I was actually still writing Yield while finishing up a very challenging MBA program, too. I don't know how I juggled everything, but somehow you just find a way when you're passionate about it. Lately I've been more focused on the marketing of Yield, but when I'm in creation mode, I'll write in the evenings until the ideas stop flowing. No word or page goal. I think creativity is hard to force a finite number on. It just happens, in the quantity and breadth it chooses to bestow.
Q. What types of genres do you like to read?
I like to read everything from Dan Brown's thrillers and Tom Clancy's military ops novels, to sci-fi, fantasy and dystopians. I'm a big fan of multi-book story arcs like Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Eddings's Belgariad. I also just finished reading the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and was really impressed by the author. She created such an intense pace through the entire three-book series. I think I read each one in about a day. They were just too good to be put down. I love books like that.
Q. Is there a particular author or book that influenced you as a writer?
I loved exploring the science fiction worlds of Tolkien, Brian Jacques, and David Eddings growing up. I was always amazed by the feeling that a good book series could give you. I remember as I finished up one of Eddings's five-part story lines in high school, having this almost overwhelming feeling of disappointment that it was over. I didn't want the characters that I had been through so much with to leave my mind. Great writers make us feel like we truly know the characters, and can bring them to life in a way that is so real and personal. We feel their fears. Laugh at their triumphs. Cry at their pain. I started writing in high school at first to continue some of those incredible stories that I just didn't want to end. I moved on to graphic novels, toying with the idea of being a comic book illustrator, then on to screenplays and finally my debut novel, Yield.
Q. What aspect of the story, YIELD, did you find most challenging?
I think the biggest challenge for me was the process after all the writing was done. Becoming an author isn't simply putting together a compelling story with a unique hook, then watching the floodgates of success open wide. Becoming a published author with tangible numbers is far more difficult than writing the story itself. There are a lot of other very talented writers out there, all competing with one another to reach prospective readers. New writers must be well versed in social media, able to network and build connections, be willing to invest their own time and resources, maintain engaging presences on a host of different platforms, and always be looking for ways to market themselves and their brand to new customers. I have an MBA in marketing, so thankfully I have a bit of experience in that arena. But trying to build credibility and a following takes time. New writers start at ground zero, regardless of how great you think your book might be. Don't get discouraged, but don't underestimate that either.
Q. Any final thoughts?
Thanks for featuring me! It's been a lot fun so far and the Armageddia journey is just beginning. Buckle up!
For a special sneak peek at book two of the series, check out my blog at www.armageddia.com. I've posted an exclusive excerpt there. Yield, book one of the Armageddia Series, will be released on August 14th in paperback and e-book formats. I hope you all enjoy it!
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Poughkeepsie by Debra Anastasia
Title: Poughkeepsie
Author: Debra Anastasia
Publisher: Omnific Publishing
Published Date: November 18, 2011
Format: Paperback & Kindle
Buy on Amazon: Paperback or Kindle
Author Website: http://www.debraanastasia.com/#!poughkeepsie
Synopsis from Back Cover:
He counts her smiles every day and night at the train station. And morning and evening, the beautiful commuter acknowledges him-just like she does everyone else on the platform. But Blake Hartt is not like the others . . . he's homeless. Memories of a broken childhood have robbed him of peace and twisted delusions into his soul. He stays secluded from the sun, sure the world would run from him in the harsh light of day.
Each day, Livia McHugh smiles politely and acknowledges her fellow
commuters as she waits for the train to the city. She dismisses this
kindness as nothing special, just like her. She's the same as a million
other girls-certainly no one to be cherished. But special or not, she
smiles every day, never imagining that someone would rely on the simple
gesture as if it were air to breathe.
When the moment comes that Livia
must do more than smile, without hesitation she steps into the fray to
defend the homeless man. And she's surprised to discover an inexplicable
connection with her new friend. After danger subsides, their smiles
become conversation. Their words usher in a friendship, which awakens
something in each of them. But it's not long before their bond must
prove its strength. Entanglements from the past challenge both their
love and their lives.
Blake's heart beats for Livia's, even if her hands
have to keep its rhythm. Love is patient. Love is kind. Love never
fails. Love never fails, right?
In an interwoven tale of unlikely loves
and relationships forged by fire, Debra Anastasia takes readers into the
darkest corners of human existence, only to show them the radiant power
of pure adoration and true sacrifice. Complicated families and confused
souls find their way to light in this novel, which manages to be racy,
profane, funny, and reverent all at once.
My Thoughts:
I need to be honest, Debra Anastasia's Poughkeepsie is a book that I started to read with great hesitation. I had read fantastic things about Poughkeepsie on numerous GoodReads message boards. I had also seen that it was recommended to read if you enjoyed the Fifty Shades trilogy. This wasn't where my reluctance was coming from. My problem was that I had read a synopsis of Poughkeepsie which basically said the book centered around a homeless man who fell in love with an educated woman. The lady cured said homeless man of his issues, he got a job, and they all lived happily ever after.
WRONG WRONG WRONG! My perception couldn't have been more flawed. I would really be kicking myself had I not read Poughkeepsie. Debra Anastasia has written an excellent novel that grabbed me in the beginning and never let me go. She was able to create a world with extremely flawed, yet realistic, characters that I came to love. The plot was very solid, with many surprising twists and turns. Poughkeepsie really is a great novel, and I am already looking forward to rereading it.
In Anastasia's novel, Grad student Livia goes to the Poughkeepsie Train Station every morning to get to school. There she observes Blake, a quiet, homeless man who is always there. She is the one person who doesn't look right through Blake; instead she always has a genuine smile for him. One morning, Livia stands up to a group of teenagers that were harassing and roughing Blake up. Things were never the same as Livia realizes there is more to Blake than meets the eye. What starts as a friendship quickly develops into something much more that they expected.
Blake's two brothers are Cole, an aspiring Priest, and Beckett, a man who wears many hats (mainly the hats of drug distributor/pimp/arms dealer.) While these three men are not biological brothers, they became foster brothers at an impressionable age. When the world turned its back on these three abuse survivors, they came together and created their own family. After aging out of the Foster Care system, Beckett, Blake, and Cole remained brothers. Even though each brother chose a very different life path they remained incredibly devoted to one another.
While Blake and Livia are the main characters in Poughkeepsie, I really fell in love with the supporting characters. Cole, Kyle, Beckett, and Eve were all great 3 dimensional characters. Kyle had me laughing out loud at pretty much every word that came out of her mouth. My absolute favorite characters in Poughkeepsie were Beckett and Eve. Beckett and Eve are the most violent characters, and start chaos without blinking an eye. However, these are two beautifully flawed characters that I really bonded with. Beckett and Eve are who they are because of their painful pasts. Life is definitely not fair, but these two characters took the reins and made their own destiny.
Please be aware that this book is NOT for minors. Debra Anastasia's book is filled with profanity and graphic scenes. If you do not like cursing or violence in the novels you read, Poughkeepsie is probably not for you. Nevertheless, I think the language accurately reflects the people and circumstances in the novel.
I really hope there will be a sequel to Poughkeepsie. I would love to see more of all of the characters, but especially Beckett and Eve. I felt that their romance was left open ended, and I would really like Anastasia to revisit these two for some closure.
Debra Anastasia's Poughkeepsie is a fantastic book. I loved reading it and became attached to the characters she wrote about. Poughkeepsie is definitely a book that I recommend. This is one that deserves to be on everyone's TBR list!
Debra Anastasia and Omnific Publishing has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, Poughkeepsie, for the purpose of review.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Giveaway- Autographed copy of Shannon McCrimmon's book 'The Summer I Learned to Dive'
Welcome to the Summer Giveaway Hop! Endless Day of Literary Ecstasy will be giving away an Autographed copy of Shannon McCrimmon's new book, The Summer I Learned to Dive.
Title: The Summer I Learned to Dive
Author: Shannon McCrimmon
Publisher: CreateSpace
Published Date: May 9, 2012
Synopsis from Back Cover:
On the night of her high school graduation, things take a dramatic turn when she discovers that her mother has been keeping a secret from her—a secret that causes Finn to do something she had never done before—veer off her plan. In the middle of the night, Finn packs her bags and travels by bus to Graceville, SC seeking the truth.
In Graceville, Finn has experiences that change her life forever; a summer of love, forgiveness and revelations. She learns to take chances, to take the plunge and to dive right in to what life has to offer.
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The Summer I Learned to Dive by Shannon McCrimmon
Author: Shannon McCrimmon
Publisher: CreateSpace
Published Date: May 9, 2012
Format: Paperback & Kindle
Buy on Amazon: Paperback or Kindle
Author Website: http://shannonmccrimmon.com/
Synopsis from Back Cover:
Since the time she was a little girl, eighteen-year-old Finley “Finn” Hemmings has always lived her life according to a plan, focused and driven with no time for the average young adult’s carefree experiences. On the night of her high school graduation, things take a dramatic turn when she discovers that her mother has been keeping a secret from her—a secret that causes Finn to do something she had never done before—veer off her plan. In the middle of the night, Finn packs her bags and travels by bus to Graceville, SC seeking the truth. In Graceville, Finn has experiences that change her life forever; a summer of love, forgiveness and revelations. She learns to take chances, to take the plunge and to dive right in to what life has to offer.
My Thoughts:
Shannon McCrimmon's The Summer I Learned to Dive totally caught me off guard. I really didn't know what to expect with this book, so I went in with an open mind. I decided I would read a couple of chapters just to get a feel for it, and then save the rest for a road trip we were going to take on Saturday. Ummmmm, yeah. Once I picked this book up it was nearly impossible to put down. I even brought it to read at my hair salon, which is saying a lot. When I go to get my hair done, it's a gossip fest. Always a fun time to dish with the other girls. However, during this appointment I was in my own little, The Summer I Learned to Dive world. I didn't care what the other women were discussing, I was totally enthralled.
Being 30 years old (uggg, that hurts to type out,) I've read a lot of YA literature. In fact, I took several YA literature classes while studying for my Masters in college. I have found that after a while most books start blending together. I'm not saying that as a bad thing, I really enjoy the YA genre. However, The Summer I Learned to Dive is totally unlike any other Young Adult novel I have read. The characters are believable, the setting vivid, and the plot touching and surprising.
McCrimmon's The Summer I Learned to Dive follows 18 year old Finn as she embarks on quite the journey. Finn always had a plan. She would study hard, get into a prestigious Women's College, and then become a Doctor. In order for her plan to work, she had to sacrifice many things, including, friends, dating, parties, and teenage life in general. I found that I could really relate to Finn. While I had a few friends in high school, my focus was purely academic. It wasn't until college that I started 'living' life and came out of my shell.
After Finn's graduation ceremony (where of course she was Valedictorian,) Finn stumbles upon a secret her mother had been keeping. All of her well kept plans flew out the window when Finn decided to follow her heart. Finn travels to South Carolina in the middle of the night in order to discover who she really is. Embracing her new philosophy, Finn begins a new life with a family she never knew.
The Summer I Learned to Dive is a fast read that made me laugh one minute and then wipe my eyes the next. McCrimmon also did a great job in creating a realistic romance between Finn and Jesse. After I finished The Summer I Learned to Dive, I wasn't ready to give it up. I wanted to read more about Finn, Jesse, and her grandparents. I went online and started searching for information about the novel and found that McCrimmon is currently working on the sequel to The Summer I Learned to Dive. YES YES YES!!! This was exactly the information I wanted to find, I absolutely can't wait!
Shannon McCrimmon's The Summer I Learned to Dive is a great read! I challenge everyone to place it on your TBR lists!
Shannon McCrimmon has provided me with a complimentary copy of her book, The Summer I Learned to Dive, for the purpose of review.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
One Pink Line by Dina Silver
Author: Dina Silver
Publisher: CreateSpace
Published Date: October 20, 2011
Format: Paperback & Kindle
Buy on Amazon: Paperback or Kindle
Author Website: http://www.dinasilver.com
Synopsis from Back Cover:
Sydney Shephard, a sweet-tempered, strong-natured college senior is young, in love with an exceptional man, and unexpectedly pregnant. Faced with a child she never planned for, she is forced to relay this news to her neurotic mother, relinquish her youth, and risk losing the love of her life. Then there's Grace, a daughter, who believed she was a product of this great love, grows to realize her existence is not what she assumed, and is left with profound and puzzling questions about who she really is.
Spanning generations and every imaginable emotion, One Pink Line reveals how two points of view can be dramatically at odds, and perhaps ultimately reconciled. Simultaneously deeply felt and lighthearted, One Pink Line deftly mines how the choices we make are able to alter so many lives, and how doing the right thing and living honestly can bring unexpected, hard-won happiness. It's a must-read for anyone who craves a great love story, absorbing characters, and plenty of laughs along the way.
My Thoughts:
One Pink Line, by Dina Silver, is a funny, touching, and surprising story about relationships and how they evolve over time. The story is told from 2 viewpoints; that of Sydney, a frisky college student, and Grace, a girl who begins to question everything she thought she knew when old truths come to light. One Pink Line does an excellent job of pulling you in and not letting go. I had planned to read a little everyday, stretching the book out over a week. However, that plan was shot once I picked it up. Once Pink Line was next to impossible to put it down!
I would definitely classify One Pink Line as a great piece of chick lit. While there are some romantic scenes with Sydney and her almost perfect boyfriend Ethan, One Pink Line really dives into the relationships between Sydney and her family and friends. Sydney's relationship with her Mother evolves the most. When Sydney left for college, she had a strained relationship with her Mom. As the years go by, Sydney and her Mother continue to bicker. However, their relationship seems to strengthen as Sydney graduates from college and finds a 'real' job. Do to unforeseen circumstances, Sydney finds that she really needs her Mother to lean on, and surprisingly her Mother is there for her. By the end of the story their relationship has really come full circle.
In One Pink Line, Grace begins her story as a young child. She has an excellent relationship with her Mother and Father, and is the apple of their eyes. However, as she grows older she begins to notice little things that seem different between herself and the rest of her family. It all comes to a head during her Sex Education class. As Grace begins to piece things together in the Nurse's Office, her young world falls apart. She must then decide what a family really is and how she fits into it.
Dina Silver did an excellent job in writing One Pink Line. She easily transitioned between Sydney and Grace's voice. One Pink Line is full of witty lines and laugh out loud scenes. I definitely recommend One Pink Line. Once you start it you will not want to put it down!
Dina Silver has provided me with a complimentary copy of her book, One Pink Line, for the purpose of review.
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