Top 5 Fall Books I Want to Read

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Good Morning everyone.

As a blogger its always hard to find things to post on a daily bases so today I thought I would share my Top 5 Fall books I am looking forward to reading.

afterworlds

 

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Scott Westerfeld comes a smart, thought-provoking novel-within-a-novel that you won’t be able to put down.

Darcy Patel has put college on hold to publish her teen novel, Afterworlds. With a contract in hand, she arrives in New York City with no apartment, no friends, and all the wrong clothes. But lucky for Darcy, she’s taken under the wings of other seasoned and fledgling writers who help her navigate the city and the world of writing and publishing. Over the course of a year, Darcy finishes her book, faces critique, and falls in love.

Woven into Darcy’s personal story is her novel,Afterworlds, a suspenseful thriller about a teen who slips into the “Afterworld” to survive a terrorist attack. The Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead, and where many unsolved-and terrifying-stories need to be reconciled. Like Darcy, Lizzie too falls in love…until a new threat resurfaces, and her special gifts may not be enough to protect those she cares about most.

belzhar

 

If life were fair, Jam Gallahue would still be at home in New Jersey with her sweet British boyfriend, Reeve Maxfield. She’d be watching old comedy sketches with him. She’d be kissing him in the library stacks. She certainly wouldn’t be at The Wooden Barn, a therapeutic boarding school in rural Vermont, living with a weird roommate, and signed up for an exclusive, mysterious class called Special Topics in English.

 

But life isn’t fair, and Reeve Maxfield is dead.
Until a journal-writing assignment leads Jam to Belzhar, where the untainted past is restored, and Jam can feel Reeve’s arms around her once again. But there are hidden truths on Jam’s path to reclaim her loss.

 

From New York Times bestselling author Meg Wolitzer comes a breathtaking and surprising story about first love, deep sorrow, and the power of acceptance.

i'llgiveyouthesun

 

Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life. The early years are Noah”s story to tell. The later years are Jude”s. What the twins don”t realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they’d have a chance to remake their world.

theyoungelites

 

I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.

Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.

Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all.

Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society.This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen.
Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.

It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.

tellmeagainhow

 

With the heart of Judy Blume and wit of Alison Bechdel, Sara Farizan brings the authenticity and humor that distinguished her debut novel, If You Could Be Mine, to her second work of fiction for teens.

Leila has made it most of the way through high school without having a crush on anyone, which comes as something of a relief. Her Persian heritage makes her different enough; if word got out that Leila liked girls, life would be twice as hard. And what would her parents think? It’s bad enough she’s not even going to become a doctor. But when a sophisticated, beautiful new girl, Saskia, shows up, Leila starts to take risks she never dreamed of, especially when it looks as if the attraction between them is mutual. Struggling to sort out her growing feelings and Saskia’s confusing signals, Leila confides in her old friend, Lisa, and grows closer to Tomas, whose comments about his own sexuality are frank, funny, wise, and sometimes painful. Gradually, Leila begins to see that almost all of her classmates are more complicated than they first appear to be, and many are keeping fascinating secrets of their own.

I currently have Afterworlds sitting here waiting to be read and I will probably start that very soon. I am hoping that my local library will get the other books in their collection so that I can borrow them.

What are you looking forward to reading this fall?

Review/ Shadow Fire

I received this book for free from publisher/pr firm in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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ShadowFire

Shadow Fire by Kimber Leigh Wheaton 
(The Light Chronicles #1) 
Publication date: February 24th 2014
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult

Synopsis:
Ashlyn – a free-spirited teenager whose peaceful life is shattered when the village
elders honor her with a perilous quest to recover a stolen relic.

Zane – a jaded mercenary, torn by his undeniable desire for Ashlyn and the dark
secret that could make her hate him forever.

Delistaire – a malevolent sorcerer driven by an insatiable lust for power.
All three are bound together by an ancient relic supposedly infused with the power
of a Goddess.

Shadow Fire – adventure, passion, secrets, and betrayal

As Ashlyn and Zane race to stay one step ahead of the evil lurking in the shadows,
their passions are ignited and their bond strengthens. But will they find the relic
before Delistaire? Or has their entire quest been orchestrated from the very
beginning by a madman in pursuit of ultimate power?

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AUTHOR BIO
Kimber Leigh Wheaton is a YA/NA author with a soft spot for sweet romance and is a
member of Romance Writers of America.

She is married to her soul mate, has a teenage son, and shares her home with three
dogs and four cats. No, she doesn’t live on a farm, she just loves animals. Her
house is filled with dragons, though she does lament that they are the porcelain,
non-flying variety.

Kimber Leigh is addicted to romance, videogames, superheroes, villains, and
chocolate—not necessarily in that order. (If she has to choose, she’ll take a
chocolate covered superhero!)

Her debut novel, Shadow Fire, is the first book in the Light Chronicles series.
Watch for book two, Stolen Moon, a standalone sequel, coming August 2014.

Author links: 
https://www.facebook.com/KimberLeighWheaton
http://www.kimberleighwheaton.com/
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7885752.Kimber_Leigh_Wheaton
https://twitter.com/Cymberle

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Lately it seems like I have been craving different things in regards to reading and stepping away from what I normally read.  As a book blogger this is a good thing, right?

When I first read the synopsis of the book I knew I wanted to read it because it sounded really good and I have to say that I was really impressed because I normally don’t read fantasy. I have tried don’t get me wrong but I just could never get into it and even with the encouraging efforts of a really cute guy I use to like back in the day. Although now  I am thinking that this might be the book that peaks my interest into fantasy.

I have to say right away that I just love the cover of the book. Don’t you?

Shadow Fire is the first book in the series and the next book is called Stolen Moon (with another pretty cover). Which sounds really good too and according to reviews of the books these can be read as stand alones.

Every five years girls between the ages of 14 and 18 are chosen to set out an a very impossible mission to recover the golden statue and no one has been successful or returned alive until perhaps now. Ashlyn has been selected to take part. Her partner in all of this is Zane ans Shadow and you can tell almost instantly there there is something between Ashlyn and Zane. Now will this get in the way of the mission or not?

Ashlyn was just the perfect kind of character that I like because she is just like any other girl but she isn’t afraid to get down and dirty so to speak. She was a great kick ass character and wasn’t afraid even though Zane was there to protect her.

I loved how Kimber gave us a little info about this missing golden statue and that it was addressed. I felt it made the story that much more interesting in my eyes. I mean had she not I would have been wondering why was it so important to get it back and why did no one return back alive.

This mission was not easy by any means and Ashlyn, Zane and Shadow had to encounter alot of creatures/monsters etc and many twists and turns and I liked that about the book. This is what makes a page turner and I honestly have to say it makes for a fun read because you don’t quite know what is going to happen next.

I loved Zane from the first moment of meeting him and if I had to pick a book boyfriend I would have to say it would be him. There is just something about him that I really liked. Yes he is extremely cute but he comes off like he knows he is cute and all that but isn’t like that, if that makes any sense.

I am curious to see where this story line will end up and will it continue into the next book?

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Swapoween

Have you ever read posts and were like, Where have I been to not see this before? Yup that was me when I discovered this fun Swapoween.

 

 

Today September 15th is the last day to sign up if you are interested in taking part in the Swapoween. I just got in under the radar as you can see.

This will actually fill right into place for what I have planned in October for my blog & youtube channel.

I just want to give a huge thank you to the ladies over at Chaotic Goddess Swaps for putting this together and for allowing me to take part.

Your Swap Objective
Fill a package with at least 5 goodies for your partner that you, yourself, would love to receive.  The package must include items that are Halloween-related.  
 
Dates to Remember:
  • Sign-Ups Start:  Monday, September 8th
  • Sign-Ups End: Monday, September 15th
  • First Post MUST be Posted by: Monday, September 15th
  • Partners assigned: Wednesday, September 17th
  • Packages Shipped By: Saturday October 11th
  • Show-Off Linky Opens: Wednesday, October 15th
  • Show-Off Linky Closes: Friday, October 31st

You can visit this link to find out more about it.

Release Blitz/ Captured by a Laird

Captured By A Laird - Banner

 

BOOK INFORMATION

TITLE – Captured by a Laird
SERIES – The Douglas Legacy #1
AUTHOR – Margaret Mallory
GENRE – Historical Romance/ Highland Romance
PUBLICATION DATE – September 15, 2014
LENGTH (Pages/# Words) – 319
PUBLISHER – Amazon

 

Captured By A Laird - Book Cover

 

BOOK BLURB / SYNOPSIS

THE DOUGLAS LEGACY

The Douglas sisters, beauties all, are valuable pawns in their family’s bitter struggle to control the Scottish Crown. But when powerful enemies threaten, each Douglas lass will find she must face them alone.

CAPTURED BY A LAIRD

Haunted by his father’s violent death, David Hume, the new laird of Wedderburn, sets out to make his name so feared that no one will dare harm his family again. The treacherous ally who played on his father’s weakness is dead and beyond David’s vengeance, but his castle and young widow are ripe for the taking. The moment David lays eyes on the dark-haired beauty defending her wee daughters, however, he knows this frail-looking lass is the one person who could bring him to his knees.

Wed at thirteen to a man who tried daily to break her spirit, Lady Alison Douglas is looking forward to a long widowhood. But when the fearsome warrior known as the Beast of Wedderburn storms her gates, she finds herself, once again, forced to wed a stranger. Alison is only a pawn to serve his vengeance, so why does this dark warrior arouse such fiery passion and an unwelcome longing in her heart?

With death and danger looming, these two wounded souls must learn to trust each other . . . for only love can save them.

BUY & TBR LINKS

AMAZON KINDLE USAMAZON KINDLE CAAMAZON KINDLE UK
ItunesKoboGOODREADSSHELFARI

 

EXCERPT

David strode through the battle raging between his men and the castle defenders in the courtyard and headed straight for the keep, intent on his goal.
The castle would fall quickly. The defenders lacked leadership and were in disarray. His only concern was whether the castle had a secret tunnel for escape. During the siege, he had spread his men out through the fields surrounding the fortress to keep watch. But he had concentrated his forces for the attack and most were now inside the castle. If there was a tunnel, he must secure the widow and her daughters before they had a chance to escape. He did not relish the idea of having to chase them down through the fields with dogs.
The defenders had foolishly waited too long to withdraw to the keep, and most were caught in the courtyard when David’s men burst through the gate. He barely spared them a glance as he ran up the steps of the keep.
With several of his warriors at his back, he burst through the doors brandishing his sword. He paused inside the entrance to hall. Women and children were screaming, and the few Blackadder warriors who had made it inside were overturning tables in a useless attempt to set up a defense.
“If ye hope for mercy, drop your weapons,” David shouted, making his voice heard above the chaos.
He locked gazes with the men who hesitated to obey his order until every weapon clanked to the floor, then he swept his gaze over the women. Their clothing confirmed what he’d known the moment he entered the hall. Blackadder’s widow was not in the room.
“Where is she?” he demanded of the closest Blackadder man.
“Who, m’lord?” the man said, shifting his gaze to the side.
“Your mistress!” David picked him up by the front of his tunic and leaned in close. “Tell me now.”
“In her bedchamber,” the man squeaked, pointing to an arched doorway. “’Tis up the stairs.”
David caught a sudden whiff of urine and dropped the man to the floor in disgust. The wretch had wet himself.
“Take him to the dungeon,” he ordered. The coward had given up his mistress far too easily.
David started up the wheeled stairs to the upper floors with his sword at the ready. He expected to encounter Blackadder warriors, protecting the lady of the castle. But there were none on the stairs and none guarding the door on the first floor.
Damn it. She must have escaped. He gritted his teeth as he envisioned the lady’s guards leading her through the tunnel.
He was about to open the chamber door to make sure it was empty when Brian, one of his best men, came down the stairs.
“Laird, I checked all the chambers while ye were in the hall,” he said.
David’s jaw ached from clenching it.
“There’s one door on the floor just above us that wouldn’t open with the latch,” Brian said. “Shall I break it down?”
David waved him aside and pulled the ax from his belt as he raced up the stairs.
“Open it!” he shouted and pounded on the door.
He did not wait. She could be escaping through a secret door this very moment. Three hard whacks with his ax, and the door split. He kicked it until it swung open, then stepped through.
At his first sight of the woman, his feet became fixed to the floor. He felt strange, and his vision was distorted, as if as if he had swallowed a magical potion that narrowed his sight. He could see nothing in the room but her.
She was extraordinarily lovely, with violet eyes, pale skin, and shining black hair. But there was something about her, something beyond her beauty, that held him captive. She was young, much younger than he expected, and her features and form were delicate, in marked contrast to the violent emotion in her eyes.
David knew to the depths of his soul that a brute like him should not be the man to claim this fragile flower, even while the word mine beat in his head like a drum. He had no notion of how long he stood staring at her before he became aware that she held a sword. It was longer still before he noticed the two wee lasses peeking out from behind her like frightened kittens.
Anger boiled up in his chest. Every Blackadder man in the castle who could still draw breath should have been here, standing between him and their lady. Instead, she faced him alone with a sword she could barely lift with both hands.
It was a brave, but ridiculous gesture.
There was no defense against him.

Captured By A Laird - Author Photo

 

AUTHOR BIO

MARGARET MALLORY surprised her friends & family by abandoning her legal career to write tales of romance & adventure. At long last, she can satisfy her passion for justice by punishing the bad & rewarding the worthy–in the pages of her novels.

Margaret lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her husband, goofy dog & crabby cat. With her two children off to college, Margaret spends most of her time working on her next Scottish historical romance. Visit her website for Book Group Discussion Questions, photos of Scotland, excerpts, & other info. Margaret loves to hear from readers!

AUTHOR FOLLOW LINKS

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGEWEBSITE / BLOGFACEBOOKTWITTER
GOOGLE+GOODREADSSHELFARI

 

This Release Blitz Was Organized By Authors Write Hand &
1-MINIBUTTON

Meme/ Catch, Read and Release! # 11

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What it’s all about:
Adding books to your shelves each week is fun for all book lovers, but at some point, when our piles get a little too high, when our bookshelves are double stacked, and every nook and cranny in the house has already been filled with stacks of books, we all need to make room for more. There will always be new titles added to our never-ending TBR list, including upcoming releases, debuts, and the next instalment in a book series, so why not share/highlight the books you let go of, either through donating, selling, lending, or give away. We think it’s just as important to share the books we pass on, because in the end, they help feed our book additions by giving up their space on a bookshelf, table, or night stand so we can fill it up with something from our wishlist. Catch, Read, Release! was created to share the books we add to our collection, showcase the books we’ve read, and most importantly, highlight the books who sacrifice their spots so we can buy more!

Disclaimers: This meme was inspired by Tynga’s Reviews‘ Stacking The Shelves. I’d also like to give credit to Cindy @ Tynga’s Reviews for creating the awesome Catch, Read, Release! meme graphic and for helping us with picking the name! Thank you!

How you can participate:
Create your own Catch, Read, Release! post and link back to Moonlight Gleam Reviews to spread the word so others can join the fun!
Moonlight Gleam Reviews will be hosting Catch, Read, Release! each Sunday, but there’s no set date for you to join. You don’t have to commit to post each week either, just as often as you want!
Don’t forget to visit each week and add your Catch, Read, Release! direct URL so others can visit your post!
Visit other participant links.
Don’t forget to have fun! 🙂

Lucy, a local Montreal blogger has come up with this great meme that I am going to try and take part in on a weekly bases if possible.

The above information is taken from Lucy’s blog Moonlight Gleam Reviews.

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What did I catch this week? You can see what we caught this week by looking at yesterday’s post. Sorry I am doing this post in advance because we have hockey.

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This week I read: I am still reading

inreallife

and I have to read Shadow Fire for review this upcoming week.

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This week I am releasing the following:

2018

2019

2020

This is 29 books that were boxed and given to Michael’s school. To date that is 85 books I have donated. Ya me. It feels really good to pass along books we no longer read.

Thanks Lucy for hosting this be sure to check what Lucy has done this week and others as well. Until next week have a good week everyone,

Cover Reveal/ Life Next Door

lifenextdoor

There is only one thing in life that professional pastry Chef Priscilla Westcott values more than baking and wine, and that’s honesty. A quality she soon learns that her marriage lacks when her husband runs off with their next door neighbor.

Divorced and alone, Priscilla is determined to make changes in her life. She decides to approach her new goals like one of her beloved recipes. Surely with a little time, a dash of patience, and measured planning she can whip herself—and her life—back into shape.

However, when a new—and utterly delicious—neighbor takes up residence in the house that ruined her marriage, Pricilla fears that her careful world will fold faster than a deflated soufflé.

Trent Walker knows what he wants and his sweet, sassy neighbor is at the top of the list. He’s certain that the chemistry between them would be explosive, but Priscilla fears that an affair with him, however hot, could be a recipe for disaster.

ADD IT TO YOUR GOODREADS TBR PILE TODAY: http://bit.ly/JDCRLND

Review/ Courtney Crumrin The Coven of Mystics

Courtney Crumrin and the Coven of Mystics by Ted Naifeh
Published by Oni Press, Incorporated on 2003
Pages: 32

This is a special edition bound up book of the second set of four comics. The other graphic novels that I will be reviewing are in this same format. What a great way to read a comic isn’t it?

Courtney is trying and learning on how to use her powers for good and not evil or for selfish reasons.  Courtney is still struggling to make friends at school and I hope that she will be able to find that one friend who will change things for her. Right now she is just trying to survive school.

Courtney and her relationship with her Uncle is progressing and he is trying his best to keep her out of trouble but she just doesn’t listen to him. He has taken her under his wing and teaching her things. Even though it seems like she will do anything she wants no matter what the out come could be.

The same characters return with some new additional ones. It was nice to see a little more depth to Courtney and her Uncle.

A  Hobgoblin (Tommy Rawhead) is a man eating goblin is on the loose and every one in is worried. Normally nothing really bothers the Night things except this. They fear him. So in steps the Council of the Coven and they decide that they need to step it up and call in Aloysius to take care of the hobgoblin because a prominent warlock,  his wife and family was murdered.

Will Aloysius be able to stop the hobgoblin before its too late?

The story line this time is just a little bit darker then the previous one but its still done in the same style and illustrations.

I am curious to see what will happen in the next volume.