Guest Post: Cat Winters on Giving Readers Chills +++ Win an ARC of In the Shadow of Blackbirds! (INTL)

In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters || Release date: April 2013.

In 1918, the world seems on the verge of apocalypse. Americans roam the streets in gauze masks to ward off the deadly Spanish influenza, and the government ships young men to the front lines of a brutal war, creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black watches as desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort, but she herself has never believed in ghosts. During her bleakest moment, however, she’s forced to rethink her entire way of looking at life and death, for her first love—a boy who died in battle—returns in spirit form. But what does he want from her?

Featuring haunting archival early-twentieth-century photographs, this is a tense, romantic story set in a past that is eerily like our own time.

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Cat Winters on Writing Spooky Scenes and Giving Readers Chills.

Cat Winters

How to Give Your Readers Chills

by Cat Winters

In Chapter 10 of my debut novel, IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS, my main character wakes up and believes something unsettling is lurking in the room with her. I could have simply written, “I woke up at three in the morning and felt scared,” but I thought it would be far more interesting to phrase my character’s experience the following way:

“I awoke, curled on my side and facing the wall, as the downstairs cuckoo announced three o’clock. The muted glow of the oil lamp still illuminated my golden wallpaper, but the blackness of night crowded around me as if it were a living creature. The scent of burning fireworks scorched my nostrils. A coppery taste lined my tongue and caused the fillings in my teeth to ache, while my heartbeat echoed inside the mattress, pounding like a second heart.”

From my own adventures in writing, I’ve learned that the key to writing a spooky scene is to make your readers feel as though they’re experiencing exactly what your characters are experiencing. Think about your reactions to your favorite scary novels and movies. Chances are, they caused your heart to race and had you looking over your shoulder, even though you knew it was only a story. 

Here are five tools and tips for plunging readers into evocative, terrifying fictional moments.

1. Pay attention to what physically happens to you in frightening situations.

Let your characters undergo those same physical reactions. One night after reading a book that spooked me, I lay awake in my bed, heard the echo of my heartbeat ticking away in my mattress, and realized it sounded like another heart was beating inside my bed. Yep, I then incorporated that experience into IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS, as shown in the sample paragraph above!

2. Use sensory language.

Show us your characters’ terrifying encounters through all five of their senses, not just sight. What does that haunted old house smell like to your character? How does that eerie mist feel when he walks through it? What does he hear in the darkness? Does his mouth taste dry from breathing too hard?

3. Write about things that scare YOU.

Your reader will believe a situation is frightening if you believe it’s frightening, too. If you’re terrified of spiders, have your character encounter a horrific spider—and bring in those physical reactions you experience when facing eight-legged creepy-crawlies.

4. Play around with language to find the scariest words.

“Dog” vs. “beast.” “Monster” vs. “fiend.” “Spooky old house” vs. “crumbling, crooked mansion.” Finding just the right words can transform an object from ordinary to eerie.

5. Use images and music for inspiration.

Listen to haunting melodies before you sit down to write a spine-tingling scene. Collect pictures from magazines or websites—images that stir up emotions inside you. The more reactions you have to spooky sights and sounds, the more prepared you’ll be to describe your characters’ encounters with fearful situations.

Happy writing! Happy Halloween!

Bio:

Cat Winters's critically acclaimed debut novel, In the Shadow of Blackbirds, is a nominee for YALSA's 2014 Best Fiction for Young Adults and was named one of Booklist's 2013 Top Ten Horror Fiction for Youth. Her second novel, The Cure for Dreaming, is coming Fall 2014. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two kids. Visit her online at www.catwinters.com and www.blackbirdsnovel.com.

You can also follow Cat on Twitter: @catwinters  and check out My Review of In the Shadow of Blackbirds

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Thanks to Cat for the great guest post! As a special Halloween treat, I'm giving away my ARC of In the Shadow of Blackbirds.
Competition is open Internationally and closes November 10th 2013.
Winner will be contacted by email and will have 72 hours to respond before I pick another winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Lost Boys Blog Tour: Lilian Carmine on Thundercats & Character Inspiration.

The Lost Boys by Lilian Carmine || Release date: October 24th 2013.

Fate has brought them together. But will it also keep them apart?

Having moved to a strange town, seventeen-year-old Joey Gray is feeling a little lost, until she meets a cute, mysterious boy near her new home.

But there's a very good reason why Tristan Halloway is always to be found roaming in the local graveyard...

Perfect for fans of Stephenie Meyer and Lauren Kate, The Lost Boys is a magical, romantic tale of girl meets ghost

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Guest Post: Lilian Carmine on Thundercats & Character Inspiration.

Lilian Carmine

I grew up in the middle of a slew of boys, having two brothers and a pack of cousins to run around and play with during all my Spring breaks, Christmas and holidays.

As I followed my brothers and cousins around, I realized boys have much more interesting and active games than girls. Their toys are much more fun to play with as well. I tried hard not to be left out in their play dates. I joined in their games of hide and seek and bike rides, and asked for Legos and Thundercats action figures rather than plastic cooking pans and Barbie dolls to play with.

The dolls my mother loved to give me were left behind, forgotten in the corner of the room. I never thought it was fun playing with them anyway – they did nothing interesting or fun. But Cheetara on the other hand, she was so incredibly cool! She fought dangerous enemies, she jumped and ran and knew how to defend herself. She was not a helpless thing. She was active - a heroine.

When the idea of writing about a female main character first appeared in my head, I thought about what was going to be her core, the most important part of her character. I wanted her to be active not passive. That was the main thing, the fuel to ignite all the other aspects of her personality.

Joey is not the type of girl who sits and waits to be rescued. She’s going to be doing the rescuing instead. She’s going to be the Knight in shining armor and the heroine of the story. There are already too many books about heroes; I thought it was time for a girl to be the warrior now.

Joe Gray is fair, loyal and has a hero’s heart and spirit in her. She’s bold, brave and fierce. These are all very active attributes, but having this kind of energy doesn’t mean she has to stop being feminine; she is after all, still a girl.

She can also be lovely when she wants, and most people are drawn to her strength, beauty and grace.

I didn’t want to stereotype Joey in any way, though. She isn’t just a tomboy. She can be a kick-ass fighter, but she can also be kind hearted, gentle, seductive, goofy, insecure and shy. She can falter and be scared sometimes, as we all are at some point in our lives. She can be blindly reckless and impulsive and be ruled by anger. BUT she doesn’t sit sulking or just whine and do nothing to solve her problems. She will always fight with all her might for the things she believes and the ones she loves.

She has flaws and makes mistakes, but she has truly beautiful qualities.

Joey is a myriad of many qualities, as all human beings are. In the end, all these things are not destined only for males or females, they are human traits and I think that is why everyone will be able to relate and connect with Joe Gray, and that she might even inspire and be a good role model for all readers out there, be they boys or girls.

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To find out more Follow Lilian on Twitter @LilyCarmine and check out the rest of the tour stops!

 

Book Review: In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters.

Product details:
Publisher: Amulet Books.
Hardcover, 387 pages.
Release date: April 2nd 2013.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Ages: 12+
Source: Received from publisher for review.

In 1918, the world seems on the verge of apocalypse. Americans roam the streets in gauze masks to ward off the deadly Spanish influenza, and the government ships young men to the front lines of a brutal war, creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black watches as desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort, but she herself has never believed in ghosts. During her bleakest moment, however, she’s forced to rethink her entire way of looking at life and death, for her first love—a boy who died in battle—returns in spirit form. But what does he want from her?

Featuring haunting archival early-twentieth-century photographs, this is a tense, romantic story set in a past that is eerily like our own time.

Eerie and evocative with a richly engaging storyline and a plucky, spirited heroine, In the Shadow of Blackbirds, the stunning debut from Cat Winters is a compelling read that is as highly original as it is spine-shiveringly spooky.

The year is 1918, a year, which, according to our heroine Mary Shelley Black, ‘the devil designed.’ The war is raging in Europe, and back home hundreds and thousands of people are dying daily from the deadly Spanish flu that’s sweeping the nation. Death lurks around every corner and knocks on every door, so it’s no surprise that people feel drawn to the dark side of life, with séances and spirit photography the order of the day.  Mary Shelley, though, has no time for this sort of thing.  A physician’s daughter, Mary stays true to her mother’s memory by putting her faith in science, rather than spirits.

However, when her father is arrested for treason, Mary goes to stay with her battleship-building Aunt Eva, and enters a different world; a world of hysteria and paranoia where spirit photography is revered. Mary is dismissive of her aunt’s beliefs, until one day, overwhelmed by yet more bad news she rushes outside in a storm and is struck by lightening. On wakening, there’s something different about Mary, and it soon emerges just how touched by death she has been when the spirit of her killed-in-battle sweetheart Stephen starts paying her visits late at night. Mary wants nothing more than for Stephen’s soul to be at rest, and for that, she needs to dig deep to find answers about the blackbirds that haunt Stephen and make her feel like she’s losing her mind.

Combining a richly drawn historical setting, with a haunting mystery, sweet, sweet love story and heart-wrenching loss, In the Shadow of Blackbirds is a wonderfully imagined and meticulously researched tale that is a real reading treat despite its myriad dark themes.   In Mary Shelley Black, Cat Winters has created a heroine is who as intelligent and kind-hearted as she is spirited and adventurous. Mary Shelley reminded me in many ways of Evie O’ Neill, the heroine of Libba Bray’s The Diviners, and, I think too that anyone who enjoy Bray’s book will also have a pretty enjoyable time reading this one, and vice versa.  Just like Evie, Mary Shelley is a wonderfully drawn character. Honest, loyal and full of integrity, Mary stands up for what she believes no matter what, and she believes Stephen when he tells her there is more to his death than first meets the eye.

The time and setting of In the Shadow of Blackbirds also really appealed to my love of history, while the vintage photographs which appear throughout the book add a haunting sense of reality to a story where death is ever-present and where people must be ever-vigilant in fighting off the threat of the deadly Spanish flu – onion syrup, anyone? Of course, In the Shadow of Blackbirds is not all about dealing with the harsh realities of daily life in 1918, there’s also the spirit world to contend with.  I have to say, I have a particular love of books that deal with the spiritualist craze; I’m a big fan of Mary Hooper’s Velvet, and I urge you to check that one out if you’ve read and enjoyed this book.  Here, although Mary Shelley is still a skeptic even after her encounters with Stephen’s spirit, she attends séances and spirit photography sessions in order to get closer to the truth, and what she discovers is very, very interesting indeed.

Gothic and haunting with a mystery that kept me guessing and a love story that tugged on   my heart-strings, In the Shadow of Blackbirds is an accomplished debut novel that makes for a wonderful Halloween read.  Cat Winters has found a fan in me, and I’m already looking forward to her next novel, The Cure for Dreaming, which releases next year.

Readalikes: The Diviners by Libba Bray, Velvet by Mary Hooper.

 

Reviewed by Arianne: Invisibility by Andrea Cremer & David Levithan.

Product details:
Publisher: Penguin.
Paperback, 358 pages.
Release date: May 7th 2013.
Rating: 3½ out of 5.
Ages: 12+
 Reviewed by: Arianne.

Stephen has been invisible for practically his whole life — because of a curse his grandfather, a powerful cursecaster, bestowed on Stephen’s mother before Stephen was born. So when Elizabeth moves to Stephen’s NYC apartment building from Minnesota, no one is more surprised than he is that she can see him. A budding romance ensues, and when Stephen confides in Elizabeth about his predicament, the two of them decide to dive headfirst into the secret world of cursecasters and spellseekers to figure out a way to break the curse. But things don’t go as planned, especially when Stephen’s grandfather arrives in town, taking his anger out on everyone he sees. In the end, Elizabeth and Stephen must decide how big of a sacrifice they’re willing to make for Stephen to become visible — because the answer could mean the difference between life and death. At least for Elizabeth.

Invisibility is a difficult one to rate. I really wanted to adore it – there’s a lot of love for it floating around book blogs these days – but I just couldn’t quite force myself to enjoy a story which fell flat in so many critical places.

This book is told from two different viewpoints. Stephen was born invisible - the result of a horrific curse cast by his grandfather before Stephen was even born. New girl Elizabeth secretly feels invisible - but her sharp Minnesota tongue soon makes short work of that when she arrives in NYC.  One person the multiple narrative fails to feature is Elizabeth's younger brother, Laurie - though I really wish it had. He feels like the most visible person on the planet, especially when the bullies come for him.

But when Elizabeth and Stephen begin to fall in love, a whole new dimension opens up for them - literally. Thrust into a world bound by magic and by tradition, an epic battle overtakes all the other problems they thought they had. With Stephen’s grandfather back in town and cursecasters on the warpath, it's time to take action - or they'll lose their lives as well as their love.

Reading Invisibility is kind of a package deal. You have to put up with the hype and the huge reputations of the authors, and you have to suspend your disbelief long enough for the cool contemporary meets paranormal romance concept to work. Realism isn’t this book’s strong point and you have to accept that from the word go. It’s such an obvious issue, in fact, that the opening moments of Stephen’s no-nonsense narrative address it directly.

Once you get past those first few world-building, backstory-telling pages, the book is very much a thematic tale. Equal parts action and anguish, there is an all-round emphasis on where the characters have come from and where they might be going. 

And of course, Levithan and Cremer have taken real care to bulk up the story with countless moral and intrapersonal questions. The answers are never too far away, but you’ll have to look past the immediate surface to find the ones that matter.

The mythology behind Stephen’s supernatural ability is the main plot motivator and I really like the way the book is built around it. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever read before and I loved that – it was one of the best executed elements of the book. 

Unfortunately the New York setting still feels cliché and overused even when the unique concepts of cursecasters and spellseekers are taken into account. NYC feels like such a default location in the American young adult scene and I just wanted something more. The two worlds are so different they should mesh together easily in the hands of these two very capable authors, but they don’t. 

In contrast, I love the differences between Stephen and Elizabeth's voices. Stephen is written in typical David Levithan style. He's straightforward, matter-of-fact and devoid of flashiness – it’s Elizabeth who is more of a surprise. (I refuse to call her Jo. As a nickname, it just doesn't make sense!) She'll never back down from a fight, but she's also brash and frequently alienates herself from the reader, making her hard to consistently like.

Stephen and Elizabeth fall in love with little fire or passion, but it's still preferable to the reasonless romance featured in Andrea Cremer's Nightshade series. Up to this point both perspectives seem a little detached from one another but the power of dual authorship is perhaps most apparent here. Instead of tumbling down the rabbit hole of instantaneous and undying love, Stephen and Elizabeth are honest and just want to be there for each other. It would have been really cute, if only they could have lightened up and had some fun together.

Laurie is the saving grace of the cast. He's Elizabeth's brother, but there's a clear Levithan influence on him. He's funny, sweet and in truth, he’s the real hero of the book. His belief in Stephen never wavers and he shows extraordinary courage in the face of violence and hatred.

Laurie's a big part of the reason why I'm really hoping for a sequel, despite my reservations about Elizabeth. It may have its flaws, but Invisibility has a whole lot of potential packed behind its innocent cover.

In short: Simply put, Invisibility could do with some more energy and spark in its narrative. I didn't love it, but in the hands of the right reader, this contemporary-with-a-difference has the potential to become a real favourite. 

 

--Arianne.

Reviewed by Liz: The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud.

Product details:
Publisher: Doubleday Children's.
Hardcover, 440 pages.
Release date: August 29th 2012.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Ages: 8+
Source: Received from publisher for review.
Reviewed by: Liz from Planet Print.

When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in . . .

For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.

Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.

Set in a city stalked by spectres, The Screaming Staircase is the first in a chilling new series full of suspense, humour and truly terrifying ghosts. Your nights will never be the same again . . .

Having trouble with Visitors? Lockwood & Co. is here to help. Young Anthony Lockwood and his employees, Lucy and George, are well-equipped to deal with any troublesome hauntings and ghostly goings-on. However, when a particular nasty case leaves Lockwood & Co. in debt to a client, they are forced to accept an even more difficult and terrifying case to pay it off. Can they solve a decades old murder and take on a house full of dangerous Visitors to save Lockwood & Co, and the home they all share? 

As a fan of Jonathan Stroud's Bartimaeus trilogy, I was really looking forward to starting The Screaming Staircase, and I can safely say that it did not disappoint. While the Bartimaeus trilogy will always remain a series incomparable to most (I still miss old Barty!), The Screaming Staircase was such a fun and enjoyable book with a great cast of characters and a lot of witty dialogue. Lucy, our narrator, was an intelligent young teen who had joined Lockwood & Co. as a junior field operative. Her Talent was the ability to hear ghosts (also called Visitors) much more clearly than others, and she was particularly Sensitive to them and the emotions they experienced while they were alive. I really liked Lucy, she had a good sense of humour and was always up for a challenge, though she was nowhere near as reckless as Lockwood, who often charged in without thinking. She also hated being thought of as the "weak link" of the group and had to handle people looking down on her, but I think she dealt with it quite well overall. Her Talent was also quite fascinating as she was able to collect detailed information from Visitors that helped in investigations.

Lockwood was a character that you just had to like. He was funny and good-natured and though he was impetuous, he was actually very clever and could come up with theories quickly and improvise to build on them. He clearly cared a lot about George and Lucy too, and didn't like it when people judged them all for being "too young" to be ghost-hunting. George was sort of Lockwood's opposite; he liked to do thorough research before setting out, he said whatever he thought, even if it was rude, and while he and Lockwood got along, George and Lucy had a bit of more strained relationship, though I think they both respected each other. George however was a vital part of a team and without his research, they probably wouldn't get much done!

Plot-wise, I really liked reading about the way everyone dealt with the Visitors - they hated iron, so carrying iron filings and chains was essential. There were also weapons made from Greek Fire which were very cool, and the scenes where ghost-fighting occurred were some of the best ones. The mystery was engaging and I was very intrigued to find out how a certain ghost died. To be honest, some things were a little predictable and I wasn't surprised to find out who the culprit was, but it was enjoyable all the same. I also loved the scene involving the actual "screaming staircase" and that was probably one of my favourite parts of the book. My only complaints would be that the characters acted and spoke a lot older than their age, and the setting didn't seem modern day - even though there were TVs and cars and bank wiring, it seemed more Victorian era/early 1900s to me. I would have liked to have known more about how Visitors became so prevalent as well, but I'm sure there'll be more explanation in future books.

Overall, The Screaming Staircase was a fab new start to what is looking like another great series by Jonathan Stroud. I'll definitely be continuing the series, and I recommend this to anyone who likes ghost stories with a lot of humour and mystery.

 


--Liz.

Read All About It: News, Deals and Cover Reveals from Amy Plum, Kimberly Derting, James Dawson, Susanne Winnacker & More!

Here's a round up of the latest book news, deals and some cover reveals that I've discovered over the past few weeks!  It's also basically a digest of all the exciting news stories that come my way and which I've mostly already posted on my twitter and Facebook feeds, so if you want up-to-the-minute book news and you don't want to have to wait around for me to type this up, you can follow me on those sites!

 Like DaisyChainBookReviews on Facebook  ||   Follow  @daisychainbooks on Twitter and then you'll never miss a thing!

After the End by Amy Plum || Release date: May 2014

"She’s searching for answers to her past. They’re hunting her to save their future."

World War III has left the world ravaged by nuclear radiation. A lucky few escaped to the Alaskan wilderness. They've survived for the last thirty years by living off the land, being one with nature, and hiding from whoever else might still be out there.

At least, this is what Juneau has been told her entire life.

When Juneau returns from a hunting trip to discover that everyone in her clan has vanished, she sets off to find them. Leaving the boundaries of their land for the very first time, she learns something horrifying: There never was a war. Cities were never destroyed. The world is intact. Everything was a lie.

Now Juneau is adrift in a modern-day world she never knew existed. But while she's trying to find a way to rescue her friends and family, someone else is looking for her. Someone who knows the extraordinary truth about the secrets of her past.

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The Taking by Kimberly Derting || Release date: April 2014

A flash of white light . . . and then . . . nothing.

When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.

Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.

Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?

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Book Deals, Book Deals, Book Deals.... 

Book Adaptation for French Drama 'The Returned'  

Pan Macmillan has bought the rights to develop two books taking storylines from TV series "The Returned".
Tor UK editorial director Julie Crisp bought world rights in a six-figure deal from agent Ajda Vucicevic at Luigi Bonomi Associates, representing Zodiak Rights and Haut et Court TV.

The acquisition follows Pan Macmillan's publication of Scandinavian TV series "The Killing", developed by thriller writer David Hewson with screen writer Soren Sveistrup.

Macmillan Adult Books publisher Jeremy Trevathan said: "More and more the different areas of popular entertainment are drawing inspiration from each other and delivering wonderful experiences for readers, listeners and viewers. It's so exciting that we will be working with the creators of 'The Returned' to extend and adapt their amazingly compelling concept to turn TV gold into literary gold."

"The Returned" was aired by Channel 4 in the UK earlier this year, and has also been sold around the world include into Sweden, Turkey, Hong Kong, Australia and the US. The drama, set in a small Alpine village, sees a group of long-dead men and women attempting to return to the homes they left behind.

The novels will be adapted from the screenplays of the first two TV series by Pan Macmillan author Seth Patrick (author of Reviver). The first book will be published in autumn 2014, alongside the UK transmission of series two.

Captivating by Meredith Moore
 

Elizabeth Tingue at Razorbill has acquired Captivating, a debut YA novel by Meredith Moore, and a second novel. The first book tells the story of Vivian, who was raised with one goal: to exact vengeance on the man who broke her mother's heart two decades earlier. Vivian targets an innocent senior named Ben as part of the revenge plot, but as the plan is set into motion, she starts to uncover dark and deadly secrets. Alexandra Machinist at Janklow & Nesbit did the deal for world English rights.  
 

The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

Sarah Landis at HarperTeen has bought Kasie West's The Fill-In Boyfriend, about a girl whose boyfriend dumps her in the parking lot on prom night, so she grabs a "fill-in" date in order to convince her friends her boyfriend is real. Publication is tentatively scheduled for summer 2015. Michelle Wolfson at Wolfson Literary Agency brokered the deal for North American rights. 

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More Book Covers of Awesome...

 

 Say Her Name by James Dawson || Release date: May 2014

Roberta 'Bobbie' Rowe is not the kind of person who believes in ghosts. A Halloween dare at her ridiculously spooky boarding school is no big deal, especially when her best friend Naya and cute local boy Caine agree to join in too. They are ordered to summon the legendary ghost of 'Bloody Mary': say her name five times in front of a candlelit mirror, and she shall appear... But, surprise surprise, nothing happens. Or does it?

Next morning, Bobbie finds a message on her bathroom mirror... five days... but what does it mean? And who left it there? Things get increasingly weird and more terrifying for Bobbie and Naya, until it becomes all too clear that Bloody Mary was indeed called from the afterlife that night, and she is definitely not a friendly ghost. Bobbie, Naya and Caine are now in a race against time before their five days are up and Mary comes for them, as she has come for countless others before... A truly spine-chilling yet witty horror from shortlisted 'Queen of Teen' author James Dawson.

*******

 Forget Me by K.A. Harrington** || Release date: August 2014

Morgan never minded her boyfriend Flynn’s dark and private nature. She found it mysterious and alluring. But now he’s dead, and she can’t move on. She feels much like her dying town, River’s End, with its overgrown amusement park and abandoned houses: once happy…now rotting away.

Hoping for some closure, Morgan uploads her only photo of Flynn to the social media site FriendShare along with a note to say good-bye. But she’s shocked when the facial recognition software suggests she tag him as Evan Murphy. She’s never heard of Evan. A quick search reveals that he lives in a nearby town and looks exactly like Flynn. Same eyes, nose, jawline. Only this boy is very much alive. Digging through layers of secrets, Morgan questions everything she thought she knew about her town, her boyfriend, and even her parents’ involvement in this massive web of lies.

Forget Me is a heart-pounding novel that draws you in and keeps you guessing until the very end.

**Kim Harrington (Clarity, The Dead and Buried) writing as K.A. Harrington

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 Welcome to the Dark House by Laurie Faria Stolarz || Release date: July 2014

What’s your worst nightmare?

For Ivy Jensen, it’s the eyes of a killer that haunt her nights. For Parker Bradley, it’s bloodthirsty sea serpents that slither in his dreams.

And for seven essay contestants, it’s their worst nightmares that win them an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at director Justin Blake’s latest, confidential project. Ivy doesn’t even like scary movies, but she’s ready to face her real-world fears. Parker’s sympathetic words and perfect smile help keep her spirits up. . . at least for now.

Not everyone is so charming, though. Horror-film fanatic Garth Vader wants to stir up trouble. It’s bad enough he has to stay in the middle of nowhere with this group—the girl who locks herself in her room; the know-it-all roommate; “Mister Sensitive”; and the one who’s too cheery for her own good. Someone has to make things interesting.

Except, things are already a little weird. The hostess is a serial-killer look-alike, the dream-stealing Nightmare Elf is lurking about, and the seventh member of the group is missing.

By the time Ivy and Parker realize what’s really at stake, it’s too late to wake up and run.

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(Don't You) Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn || Release date: June 2014

Welcome to Gardnerville.

A place where no one gets sick. And no one ever dies.

Except...

There’s a price to pay for paradise. Every fourth year, the strange power that fuels the town exacts its payment by infecting teens with deadly urges. In a normal year in Gardnerville, teens might stop talking to their best friends. In a fourth year, they’d kill them.

Four years ago, Skylar’s sister, Piper, was locked away after leading sixteen of her classmates to a watery grave. Since then, Skylar has lived in a numb haze, struggling to forget her past and dull the pain of losing her sister. But the secrets and memories Piper left behind keep taunting Skylar—whispering that the only way to get her sister back is to stop Gardnerville’s murderous cycle once and for all.

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 Defector (Variants #2) by Susanne Winnacker || Release date: June 2014

(synopsis not included in case of spoilers. You can read it here) 

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Infinite Sky by C.J. Flood || Release date: May 2014

A truly beautiful book about the summer that changed one girl's life, as her mum leaves home, travellers set up camp in the family's field, her older brother goes off the rails, and she falls in love for the very first time. Opening with a funeral, Iris is mourning the boy in the casket - but who is it? Sam, her tearaway brother, or Trick, her tentative boyfriend? Over one long hot summer, we find out just how their three lives were turned upside-down.

UK Covers for Infinite Sky

Read My Review of Infinite Sky by C.J. Flood 

***** 

How freaky cool is the cover for Say Her Name by James Dawson? Along with Welcome to the Dark House, I think I've got my reading for Halloween 2014 sorted already! I'm also really looking forward to the next book in the Variants series by Susanne Winnacker - love the Dimitri/Rose type relationship that's going on there. And, of course, new books from Amy Plum and Kimberly Derting are always a source for excitement!

What do you think of the latest round up of book deals and cover reveals?  Let me know in comments!

Please note that book covers may not be final and may be subject to change.  Additional sources:  PW Children's Bookshelf and The Bookseller.


 

 

Book Review: Finding It by Cora Carmack.

Product details:
Publisher: Ebury Press.
Paperback, 320 pages.
Release date: October 10th 2013.
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Ages: 17+
Series: Losing It #3.
Other Books in Series: Losing It, Faking It.
Overall Series Rating: 3½ out of 5.
Source: Received from publisher for review.

Kelsey Summers is looking for love in all the wrong places.

Spending a few months travelling around Europe - with no parents, no responsibilities and a no limit credit card - Kelsey's having the time of her life.

But when she completely embarrasses herself in front of the hottest guy she's ever seen, she soon realises there's more to life than the next party.

What she doesn't realise is that although she's on a journey to find herself, she will end up finding The One...

Beautiful, carefree and confident, from the outside it looks like Kelsey Summers doesn’t have a care in the world. A good time girl, Kelsey’s life is a party that never stops. Now that she’s graduated, Kelsey doesn’t want to think about getting a job or place to live or a serious boyfriend alá her friend Bliss, she just wants to keep on having a good time, and, courtesy of her dad’s seemingly bottomless bank account, she can. When we meet up with Kelsey, she’s enjoying a tequila night in Budapest with two hot guys, and things are about to get wild. That’s until she sees Jackson Hunt, ex-military and hot, Hunt can see right through Kelsey’s party-girl façade. Hunt sees the real Kelsey, and what he sees is a wounded girl who numbs her pain with alcohol and random hook ups, a girl who doesn’t form attachments, a girl who doesn’t want to feel. Hunt’s been there, and he wants to help, but he’s got demons of his own. He’s got secrets too – secrets so big they just might bring Kelsey’s whole world crashing down.

A hot guy with a past, a damaged girl, secrets and lies, a whole heap of sexual tension and a European trip that takes in Budapest, Prague, a little bit of Germany, a whole lot of Italy and a slice of Spain – I should have loved this book. I should have. But, try as I might, I never really warmed to Finding It. And that’s weird, because I am a fan of Carmack’s books; I have been since I read Losing It way back when it was first self-published. Losing It is a fun book.  It has a sense of humour about it, and it made me laugh a lot. It’s different from the issue-driven, problem-laden, angsty New Adult books that seem to dominate the genre. Finding It is well written-Carmack's writing has improved since Losing It- but I never felt emotionally invested in its characters or their stories. That could be because right from the start I didn’t like Kelsey (I’ll get to her later) but it could also be because I feel like I’ve read this story a thousand times before: The damaged girl and the only guy that really gets her – because he’s been through it too. There was nothing new or surprising here to enjoy. I guessed the twist, I guessed the final outcome, and I never really felt like I got to know the characters, or at least, I never felt connected to either of them. From start to finish, I felt detached from this book.

Now, I didn’t actually remember much at all about Kelsey from Losing It. I was told that she was kind of loud and annoying, though, and boy, did Kelsey annoy me, not her party lifestyle, not even the fact that she uses daddy’s credit card to sleep her way around Europe, and not the fact that she pouts and flounces when Hunt won’t kiss her (right after she pukes at his feet –seriously) because hey, she’s beautiful, she’s Kelsey, and she always gets the guy – and btw the guy is always hot, because, well, so is she, not even…well, okay, all of those things, bar the party lifestyle, because I truly don’t have a problem with that, annoyed me. I didn’t like Kelsey. And I know that there’s a reason she acts the way she does, of course there is, but while she became less annoying over time, and by the time we get to the (very-rushed) ending she’s pretty much redeemed her character, I can’t say I ever became a fan.

I know I’m in the minority with my feelings on this one, but hey, sometimes books just don’t work out. It’s kind of like having a personality clash with someone – no matter what, you’ll find fault with everything they say or do. I think I had a personality clash with this book, or at least I had a personality clash with Kelsey. That said, there is nothing really wrong with Finding It– it just didn’t offer up anything new or exciting for me. I still say though, that this series overall is worth checking out, and if you enjoy New Adult (the genre has been hit and miss for me, I have to admit), then Carmack should be one of the authors on your list!

 

Reviewed by Emily: Bunheads by Sophie Flack.

Product details:

Publisher: Atom

Paperback, 294 pages 

Release date: October 10^th 2011

Rating: 4 out of 5

Age: 12+

Source: Received from publisher for review

Reviewed by: Emily

As a dancer with the Manhattan Ballet Company, nineteen-year-old Hannah Ward is living her childhood dream. She gets to be up on stage in front of adoring crowds every night. And while she might not be a prima ballerina yet, she's moving up the ranks and surely if she works hard enough she can make it happen.

But devoting her whole life to ballet leaves very little time for anything else: friends, family, school have all fallen by the wayside. Hannah doesn't mind, until a chance encounter in a restaurant brings Jacob into her life. He's cute, he plays guitar and he's offering a whole future that Hannah never considered. And now she must choose between her lifelong dream or what could be the love of her life...

After reading a few chapters of Bunheads, I began to suspect this was a book I wouldn’t like. The pace was quite slow, the technical ballet terms made my brain fuzzy, and there were so many characters introduced that they were all beginning to blur together. But I had read many glowing reviews by reviewers I trust, so I persevered. And somewhere around the halfway mark, I started to understand why Sophie Flack wrote Bunheads this way. The slower pace, the huge cast of characters, and the in-depth ballet details were the best way to realistically – and poignantly – portray Hannah Ward’s life.

When Hannah’s story begins, she is dedicated to ballet and striving to land a coveted role of soloist within the Manhattan Ballet Company. But then a cute guitarist by the name of Jacob comes along and makes her see how much of the real world she is missing out on because of her chosen career. Some of my favourite moments in this book are when Hannah steps outside her comfort zone (with or without Jacob) and realises how restricted her daily routine has become. I think in the process she learns how to take herself less seriously. The resolution to Hannah’s story bordered on cheesy and predictable, but I can’t deny I was smiling like crazy and SO happy for her. Predictable isn’t always the worst thing in the world, you know?

Along with Hannah, we meet A LOT of other characters. At first I didn’t understand why there were so many. But I learned to appreciate each and every one of them over the course of the story. Not only did it create a full picture of just how many people work together to put on a brilliant performance, it showed the different ways people experience the ballet world. One moment that stands out in my memory is when Mai, one of the company’s most revered soloists, collapses in class because she has pushed herself too far. Flack also touches on body image, the competitive undercurrent to the ballerinas’ friendships, and just how much the dancers must sacrifice in order to succeed. It was interesting to see the ways the industry took a toll on characters both emotionally and physically.

I think the synopsis makes it seem like this book is about choosing between ballet or a boy. While the love interest, Jacob, is the catalyst for Hannah’s change in attitude, I don’t think he is the sole reason. I think Hannah’s burnout was almost inevitable, considering her hectic schedule and the constant competition in the company. That said, the love story is very sweet and it was a big part of what kept me reading despite the slow pace. The banter shared between these two was great. There is also a competing love interest, Matt. His presence in the story sort of bothered me. But it was definitely a good way to show what Hannah would lose and gain by choosing ballet over a ‘normal’ life.

Reading this book gave me so much more respect for ballerinas. Their level of dedication is insane and amazing. I am way too lazy to ever become a ballerina (even though I don’t consider myself super lazy) so it was nice to be able to experience that world from afar through Bunheads. If you have a ballet background, you should definitely give this book a try. I think you’ll love it. Sophie Flack had a successful dancing career herself, and her knowledge of the industry shows. Plus, if you understand the jargon, the technical stuff probably won’t slow down your reading as it did mine. (The only way I could visualise the performances was by picturing the dancers in Center Stage and Black Swan.)

I had a lot of stuff to say about this book and it was difficult to condense it all into a review. I think I’ve covered most of it. But the thing I want to impress on you most is this: if you’re unsure at first if Bunheads is the book for you, I urge you to keep reading. If you do, you just might find a beautiful story of self-discovery and deciding what matters most.

Book Review: The Killing Woods by Lucy Christopher.

Product details:
Publisher: Chicken House.
Paperback, 369 pages.
Release date: October 3rd 2013.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Ages: 14+
Source: Received for review.

Emily’s dad is accused of murdering a teenage girl. Emily is sure he is innocent, but what happened that night in the woods behind their house where she used to play as a child? Determined to find out, she seeks out Damon Hillary the enigmatic boyfriend of the murdered girl. He also knows these woods. Maybe they could help each other. But he’s got secrets of his own about games that are played in the dark.

A new psychological thriller from the award-winning and bestselling author of STOLEN and FLYAWAY.

Personal demons become deadly weapons in The Killing Woods, the haunting new thriller from Stolenauthor Lucy Christopher.

What happened in the woods the night Ashlee Parker died?

Emily lives in a military town, a town where life is laced with fear and touched by death, a town where wounds run deep – a town where people know a killer when they see one. Everybody in Emily’s town is convinced her dad murdered Ashlee Parker. After all, he’s the one who carried Ashlee’s dead body out of the woods. And everybody knows that Emily’s dad hasn’t been the same since he was discharged from the army, so traumatized by his wartime experience that he now spends his days hiding out in a bunker in the woods, stalking, if you are to believe what people are saying, Ashlee Parker. But Emily knows her dad is innocent. She knows he’s not a killer. And Emily knows that the truth is out there, somewhere in the woods. But the woods are deep, dark, and sometimes deadly, just like the secrets they keep…

Damon Hilary is also keeping secrets. The most popular guy at school, Damon is golden, and in Ashlee Parker he has the hottest girlfriend too, or at least that was the case until Emily Shepherd’s wacko dad killed her in the woods. But Damon knows that’s not the full truth, because he knows that on the night Ashlee Parker died, Emily’s dad wasn’t the only other person in the woods. He knows, because he was there too- and the scary thing is he can’t remember a thing about that night. Damon wants to believe that Emily’s dad is guilty, but he knows in his heart that there’s more to this story. And with Emily so determined of her dad’s innocence, Damon starts second guessing himself, because he knows that Ashlee was no golden girl.  And Damon knows that dangerous games are played in the woods at night.

Darkly beautiful, The Killing Woods is a twisted puzzle piece of a book that kept me reading late into the night and guessing right to the end. Unlike a lot of readers, I wasn’t a huge fan of Christopher’s Stolen, finding it too slow-paced for my liking so this one was an extra-pleasant surprise for me. I’m also now thinking of re-reading Stolen in the hopes that I’ll have a newfound appreciation for it since I enjoyed this one so much.  I love a good thriller, and the inclusion of the woods here was an added bonus for me. I mean, who doesn’t find deep dark woods just a little scary -especially at night. Christopher writes beautifully, bringing the woods to life. In this wonderfully atmospheric book the woods become a character in themselves, playing games and keeping their secrets buried deep right until the final act, when the light breaks through, and the truth finally reveals.

Tense, atmospheric and haunting, this tale of dark secrets and murder in a military town is perfectly plotted and executed, and is well worth checking out.

Has Book Blogging Fallen Out of Fashion? - Follow Up & Findings.

Image Source: We Heart It

You might remember that a little while ago I wrote: This Post asking if book blogging was on the way out, or, as I put it, had fallen out of fashion.

The post proved popular and people had a lot to say – not only in blog comments, but on Twitter and via Email, so I decided to post a follow-up post here today for anyone who read the original post and was interested in finding out more.

In my initial post I commented that over the summer months I had seen a drop in visitors to the blog and many of you agreed that this year summer saw a slowdown in the blogging world. I’m not complaining too much – weather wise we had one of our best summers in years. But the summer slowdown made me reconsider my summer spotlight; in future I may take some time off from blogging during the summer months and maybe do a summer round-up instead of blogging all summer long.

The thing about the summer slowdown aspect of blogging though, is that it seems to have continued into autumn – maybe traffic and comments have picked up a little, but I still feel like the book blogger heyday is behind us.  Maybe I’m wrong. I still love blogging, but looking through the list of bloggers I follow, I see that a lot of bloggers (some who were very prominent bloggers when I first started blogging) now no longer blog.

People are still eager to blog about books, though, which is always great to hear – and for those of you who asked about it, I responded in comments, but I also have some further tips for when you are starting out which I've posted below. I know that starting out in the blogging world is tough – it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to build a blog.

You can check out my Busting the Newbie Blues advice:  HEREand HERE.

I also wrote a little article on BEATING BLOGGER BURNOUT a while back if anyone is suffering at the moment and wants to check it.

In my initial post I wondered if the only people reading and commenting on book blogs were other book bloggers – The answer is NO. Non-book bloggers read book blogs for recommendations but for the most part, the majority of comments come from other book bloggers. The reasons given for not leaving comments were mostly that it’s time consuming. Also, people read via email, on phones etc. and it’s not always possible to leave a comments.

Bottom Line: Book Bloggers receive 99% of comments form other book bloggers – and if you want comments on your blog then you need to give comments to get comments in return.

Speaking of comments, let’s talk about those BookTubers who receive lots of comments. I thought the findings on BookTubers were VERY interesting.

First off, a lot of book bloggers said they had never heard of BookTubers –and even more bloggers said that they were interested in being book bloggers – not BookTubers.

Readers, too, left feedback saying that they would prefer to read a review over watching a review stating that watching a video review is far more time consuming than reading a review; on the flipside though, people did comment that BookTubing often has that personal touch that blogging lacks, so maybe that accounts for the growing popularity of BookTubers.

And I can see BookTubing and video reviews continuing to grow, because last week, for the first time ever, I was contacted by a publisher and offered a book, not for (written) review on the blog but for video review. I know this is just one book and one publisher, but it’s interesting to note that publishers are now considering video reviews as an avenue for book promotion – so maybe they’ve seen something in the rising popularity of BookTubing too.  All I’m hoping is that book blogging and BookTubing can happily co-exist, which I’m sure they can.

And, I’m not all that worried about the state of book blogging overall, because: 1- I still enjoy blogging – even after all this time. 2 - I loved finding out that people are reading and enjoying the blog even if they don’t have time to comment – I totally understand that people don’t have time to comment but it’s nice to know that there are readers out there and that they took the time to come say hello. And 3 – if blogging has fallen a little out of fashion, then fashion is cyclical and everyone knows that everything comes back into fashion eventually, um, right?

What do you think?

Any further thoughts since I first posted about this topic?

And what do you make of the findings – especially the thoughts on BookTubers and video reviews. Has anyone else been contacted re: video reviews?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!