Category: blogging

Forward March by Skye Quinlan
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publishing date: February 1st, 2022

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indigo | IndieBound

Synopsis:

What’s worse? Someone using your face for catfishing or realizing you actually do have a crush on the catfished girl?

Harper “Band Geek” McKinley just wants to make it through her senior year of marching band—and her Republican father’s presidential campaign. That was a tall order to start, but everything was going well enough until someone made a fake gay dating profile posing as Harper. The real Harper can’t afford for anyone to find out about the Tinder profile for three very important reasons:

1. Her mom is the school dean and dating profiles for students are strictly forbidden.
2. Harper doesn’t even know if she likes anyone like that—let alone if she likes other girls.
3. If this secret gets out, her father could lose the election, one she’s not sure she even wants him to win.

But upon meeting Margot Blanchard, the drumline leader who swiped right, Harper thinks it might be worth the trouble to let Margot get to know the real her.

With her dad’s campaign on the line, Harper’s relationship with her family at stake, and no idea who made that fake dating profile, Harper has to decide what’s more important to her: living her truth or becoming the First Daughter of America.

Before I begin my review I quickly have to thank TBR and Beyond Tours for allowing me to be a part of this book tour and to Page Street Publishing for sending me an eArc of Forward March for my review today.

I should mention that there are some trigger warnings in the book.

I have to say that young adult fiction definitely has come a long way since I was a young adult and it’s all for the better. There definitely needs to be more books like this.

This is Skye’s debut novel and if her future books are anything like this then I will definitely be reading them. I loved Skye’s writing style. I was instantly hooked and wanted to keep reading to see what was going to happen. I was pleasantly surprised that I managed to read this in one day. I really hope that Skye will continue with another book because after I finished it I couldn’t stop thinking about Harper, Margot ( I loved how her dad is a Canadian Ambassador), and pretty much everyone else in the book.

Our main character is Harper and she just wants to make it through the year with no glitches because all eyes are on her because her mom is the strict school dean and her father is running in the presidential election. Then if that is not enough she discovers someone has made a fake dating profile using her photo.

This catfish is sending messages to a fellow bandmate Margot. She confronts Harper about this. Harper needs to keep this quiet while she figures out who did this and why because if this out gets it’s not going to look good. There is too much on the line for her. She just wants to blend in and not draw attention to herself. Will they be able to figure out who is doing this and why?

I loved reading how Harper and Margot went from basically being bandmates to friendship to possibly more. This was a slow burn which I was all for. Margot turned out to be the right person for Harper especially when her so-called friends started to turn their backs on Harper.

I don’t want to say much more because I feel like I will give the book away so if you are curious then I suggest picking this up to read. You won’t be disappointed.

If you have been here for a while you know I rarely buy finished copies of books and that’s mainly because I don’t tend to reread a lot of my books once I am done with them, but this is the exception to the rule. I definitely plan on purchasing this book to reread.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Skye Quinlan (she/her) was born in California during an earthquake and raised in the Midwest, where cornstalks outnumber people. She studied physical and cultural anthropology at Oregon State University, with a focus on ancient civilizations and a minor in creative writing. Forward March (Page Street Kids, February 1st, 2022) is her debut novel. When she’s not writing, you can catch her at the nearest metaphysics or craft store, dressed up in cosplay at the nearest convention, or ruining antique furniture with epoxy resin and paint. Skye still lives in the Midwest with her wife, their two dogs, several lizards, a snake, and the occasional little human (their niece). She is represented by Moe Ferrara at BookEnds Literary Agency.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | TikTok

TOUR SCHEDULE:

March 7th
Kait Plus Books – Review & Favorite Quotes
Midsummer Night’s Read – Review

March 8th
Birdie’s booktopia – Review
Rainbows and Sunshine – Review & Favorite Quotes

March 9th
Books Are Magic Too – Review
Ms. G in the Library – Review, Playlist & Top 5 Reasons to Read Forward March, Promotional Post

March 10th
Nine Bookish Lives – Promotional Post
Popthebutterfly Reads – Review

March 11th
Cindy’s Love of Books – Review
The Book Dutchesses – Promotional Post

March 12th
Twirling Book Princess – Promotional Post
Rampant Reading Reviews – Review

March 13th
Stuck in Fiction – Promotional Post
Althea Is Reading – Review & Mood Board

To see the Instagram schedule please click HERE.

Falling For The Competition
By Jen Smith
Genre: YA Contemporary Romance
Publication Date: 6th December 2021
Standalone Novel
Estimated Page Count – 285

About the book:
It’s going to be the best summer ever for ambitious, overachieving Quinn. A huge history buff, not only has she landed her dream job interning in the archives department of the local castle, but her best friend will be working there too.

However, Quinn isn’t the only one to be working in Archives this summer; Quinn’s academic rival, Patrick, is sharing her office in Muniments. They’re competing for the Letter of Recommendation (singular) from the research historian that Quinn needs to get her dream future placement.

Their emotionally-loaded and competitive rivalry turns into a reluctant friendship, as they spend every day working together in silence (and sharing the occasional Twix). Until the Re-Enactors arrive. Between Patrick and Harry – the Golden Knight of the jousting team – Quinn’s carefully planned summer is thrown into complete disarray. Meanwhile, her best friend’s relationship may look perfect on the outside, but Quinn is starting to realise that there’s more going on than there seems.

Although Quinn is determined and single minded about planning every detail of her sparkling future, she comes to discover that the best things in life are the spontaneous ones – and that some people are more important than any Letter of Recommendation (singular) could ever be.

Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Falling-Competition-changing-ambitious-people-ebook/dp/B09N6YKZM7
US – https://www.amazon.com/Falling-Competition-changing-ambitious-people-ebook/dp/B09N6YKZM7

– Jen lives in the Midlands with her husband and two children. With a Masters Degree in Medieval History, Jen loves castles and King John a little too much. Strangely un-British, she does not like tea, oranges or marzipan, but adores French cheese, guava juice and Chinese food (not together).
When not writing, Jen can often be found pointing out historical inaccuracies in period dramas, being a Lady that Lunches with close friends and playing board games with her family. Note: her handbags are always heavy due to multiple books (just in case she needs them).

Social Media Links –
@jensmith950 Twitter

Before I begin my review I quickly have to thank Rachel’s Random Resources for allowing me to be a part of this blog tour and for graciously sending me the ebook to read for my review today.

This was another hard-to-put-down book for me that I might have stayed up a little longer than I should have to finish it. The pacing of the book was perfect. I definitely wanted to know what was going to happen next.

Our main character is Quinn and she is a history buff who has just landed her dream summer job working in the Archives along with her best friend, Frankie, who will be working in the gift shop. This was a dream come true for Quinn because she is a huge history buff. Quinn has her life planned out for the summer and there is no room for errors because she needs that letter of recommendation to secure her future placement.

The only thing is now she has competition from her rival Patrick. Patrick is also a huge history buff who also feels the same way and is determined to get that letter as well. Quinn is not happy when she discovers that they will be spending time together in the office all summer. You definitely can feel the tension between the two of them. This is one of my favorite tropes enemies to lovers.

This perfectly planned summer that Quinn has planned is about to get turned upside down. How will she manage it all?

I love the cover. You definitely get that it takes place at a castle and that love is involved. I love simple covers like this.

This was Jen’s debut novel and if her future books are anything like this then I will definitely be reading them.

This is my post during the book blitz for Harrowing Roses by Barbara Cooper. In this suspenseful paranormal thriller book, Dana tries to save a missing girl, but her own life is in danger too.

This book blitz is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The book blitz runs from 7 till 13 March. See the tour schedule here.

Harrowing Roses
By Barbara Cooper
Genre: Paranormal Suspense Thriller
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 16 December 2021

Blurb:
Lyrical novella, set in surreal marshes.
Illustrations by author.

Can our heroine save the missing girl’s life … and her own?

Dana feels the atmosphere of the marsh seeping into her skin with each day she spends in the cold unwelcoming mansion of her father’s estranged family.

When her young cousin, Debra Lee, mysteriously vanishes, Dana turns to Henry – an attractive neighbor in the isolated cabin nearby, to help her search for her.

Is her cousin dead? What are these strange visions and dreams that her new friend is having … could they be connected to the missing girl?

Despite the hint of something unnatural and strange, Dana is inexplicably drawn to the surrounding woods and to Henry himself.

Does he know more about Debra Lee’s disappearance than he’s revealing… and is it the right time for Dana to start being afraid?

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon

Before I begin my review I quickly want to thank Lola’s Blog Tour and Barbara Cooper who graciously sent me a copy of her book to read for my stop today. It was a nice surprise getting it in the mail so quickly.

I was instantly hooked and read this in one sitting. I have to admit that I never read the synopsis before I begin a book because I want to go into the book blindly.

Our main character Dana and her mother have returned to her father’s family home because her father has run off and left them with nothing. They are trying to get into the family’s good books so to speak. The family does open the doors to them but it’s not very welcoming, to say the least.

While they are there Dana’s cousin goes missing without a trace. This was the point I was curious as to why she would leave? Dana is determined to find her cousin because she knows if anything will bring her closer to her family hopefully. But will she find her in time?

She enlists the help of Henry who lives very close to her because he is supposedly a clairvoyant. If anyone can help it would be him.  Dana is taken in by the supernatural aspects of the book. There is something about the woods that draws her in. You can also see that she is interested in Henry. They have interesting chemistry.

Will they be able to find her cousin alive or is she already dead?

This definitely was filled with mystery and one you wanted to know the ending to. I know I wasn’t expecting that ending or even the last 1/4 of the book to happen. I definitely want to read more of Barbara’s work moving forward.

I just found out that there is a new cover for the book. What do you think of it? I think I actually like the new cover more.

You can watch the book trailer here on Youtube

Illustrations
Harrowing Roses contains 10 illustrations by the author.

About the Author:
Barbara Cooper believes there is more to life — and to love —than meets the eye.

A lifelong fan of beautiful writing, she educated herself in law at university, earning a doctorate degree, and making a name with her works on legal history.

Yet she could not escape the siren song of her imagination. When Harrowing Roses came to her in a dream, she picked up her pen and got to work. Barbara lives in a lake-house surrounded by a landscape imbued with history and magic. She often walks along the nearby water, accompanied by her cats, when they are in the mood.

She enjoys contemplating the unknown through the medium of stories.

Author links:
– Website
– Goodreads
– Instagram
– Youtube

Turning by Joy L. Smith

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publishing date: March 1st, 2022

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indigo | IndieBound

Synopsis:

In this raw, searingly honest debut young adult novel, a former aspiring ballerina must confront her past in order to move forward from a devastating fall that leaves her without the use of her legs.

Genie used to fouetté across the stage. Now the only thing she’s turning are the wheels to her wheelchair. Genie was the star pupil at her exclusive New York dance school, with a bright future and endless possibilities before her. Now that the future she’s spent years building toward has been snatched away, she can’t stand to be reminded of it—even if it means isolating herself from her best friends and her mother. The only wish this Genie has is to be left alone.

But then she meets Kyle, who also has a “used to be.” Kyle used to tumble and flip on a gymnastics mat, but a traumatic brain injury has sent him to the same physical therapist that Genie sees. With Kyle’s support, along with her best friend’s insistence that Genie’s time at the barre isn’t over yet, Genie starts to see a new path—one where she doesn’t have to be alone and she finally has the strength to heal from the past.

But healing also means confronting. Confronting the booze her mother, a recovering alcoholic, has been hiding under the kitchen sink; the ex-boyfriend who was there the night of the fall and won’t leave her alone; and Genie’s biggest, most terrifying secret: the fact that the accident may not have been so accidental after all.

Content warnings: Being newly paralyzed from an accident, parental alcoholism, abortion.

Before I begin my review I quickly have to thank TBR and Beyond Tours for allowing me to be a part of this book tour and for graciously sending an eArc of the book so that I could read and review it for my tour stop today.

This is Joy L. Smith’s debut novel. I read this fairly quickly because once I started I couldn’t stop reading. There are definitely some heavy trigger warnings in the book but I think it’s a very powerful book that we should all read.

The main character is Genie and she is a young inspiring ballerina who has had her dreams are cut short after a tragic accident. She is angry and frustrated because is now in a wheelchair and is paralyzed. Genie takes out her anger and frustrations on everyone around her. She knows she is hurting the people around her but she is struggling to deal with everything including the many secrets she is keeping from her mother. I don’t know if it was out of fear that she would disappoint her mother or in fear her mother would start drinking again.

I have to state right off the bad that I disliked Nolan. He rubbed me the wrong way throughout the book. He was jealous, possessive, controlling, demanding, and so much more. So many times as I was reading I just wanted to shake Genie to wake up and finally leave the guy alone. He is bad news. I couldn’t help but wonder if he was the reason she had fallen and hurt herself. It’s very rare that I have this much dislike for a character like Nolan.

Another important character in the book is Kyle who she meets at physical therapy. He was also involved in an accident that he is struggling to come to terms with. I liked Kyle and I thought he was good for Genie. At times I thought he was a little too perfect but as the story progressed I kept hoping he would show Genie that not all guys are like Nolan and that she deserves better. Will she realize how important her mom and friends are to her really?

It was nice to see Genie grow in the book. I think she realized that she needed to grieve the accident and the abortion. She needed to get back to what she was passionate about even if she couldn’t physically dance again.

Just a warning when you get to the last 1/4 of the book make sure you have kleenex on hand because more than likely you will cry as I did. I definitely would read other books by Joy in the future.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Joy L. Smith is a childcare professional and lives in Queens, New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, she has a bachelor’s degree in human development and differences, with a specialization in communication disorders. She’s been writing since she was a teenager and has been mentored by Ibi Zoboi, Radha Blank, and Emma Straub through the Girls Write Now program. Turning is her debut novel.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

TOUR SCHEDULE:

February 28th
Whispering Stories – Review & Favorite Quotes
Melancholic Blithe – Mood Board & Playlist

March 1st
Kait Plus Books – Interview
Artfully Bookish – Review & Mood Board

March 2nd
Nine Bookish Lives – Promotional Post
Cocoa With Books – Review

March 3rd
The Book Dutchesses – Interview
Books-N-Bullsh!t – Mood Board

March 4th
Lily’s Cozy Blog – Review & Favorite Quotes
Justice For Readers – Review & Mood Board

March 5th
Stuck in Fiction – Interview
Love, Paola – Journal Spread

March 6th
the nutty bookworm reads alot – Review
Cindy’s Love of Books – Review

To view the Instagram schedule please click HERE.

Summer in San Sebastian by Joy Skye
Genre: Rom Com
Publication Date: 28th February 2022
Standalone Fourth Book in Sublime Retreats Romance series
Estimated Page Count – 221

ABOUT THE BOOK:
Abigail’s world has disintegrated, leaving her jobless, homeless, and loveless in a remarkably brief space of time.

​Where else can she lick her wounds but in Spain with her dippy Aunt May? She pulls on her big girl pants, swears off men, and leaps on the opportunity she’s offered in San Sebastian. Determined to get her life back on track and find her place in the world, it finally all seems to be coming together.

​Until she meets Gabe. Gorgeous, grumpy, incredibly annoying, and obviously hiding a secret, but she has to battle against the insane attraction she has for him. He’s only there for a week, after all.

​When his secret spills out on National TV, can she overcome her past hurts and learn to trust again, risking her newfound job and family in the process?

Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09PRP6D2L
US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09PRP6D2L

Before I begin my review I quickly have to thank Rachel’s Random Resources for allowing me to be a part of this blog tour and for graciously sending me an eArc of the book to read for my review today.

I know I say this all the time but I am so appreciative of being able to be a part of blog tours and getting emails inquiring if I want to join because I hear about so many great books that I honestly would not have known about otherwise. The same goes for discovering new to me authors. This is the perfect place to discover some hidden gems.

Summer in San Sebastian is the fourth book in the series and I don’t think you really need to read the books in order. I was able to read this without feeling I was missing out on something. The previous books are Corfu Capers, Clueless in Croatia, and Falling in Florence. I managed to pick up the books in ebook and I plan on reading them this month because I really enjoyed this one and would love to see what the previous books are like.

I did see this on Joy’s website:

WELCOME TO SUBLIME RETREATS ROMANCES

A series of interconnected romantic comedies that will have you laughing and falling in love. They’re heartwarming stories of love, romance, hope, new beginnings and second chances featuring unique characters all set in beautiful locations.

So it does appear as though they are interconnected. Perhaps it’s the Sublime Retreats company that is the linking factor.

Anyways back to my review.

The book takes place in San Sebastian, Spain and it sounds so beautiful there. I have never been to Spain but hopefully one day I will be able to visit.

Our main character is Abigail aka Abi and she has had a rough year, she was let go of her job, and then discovers her boyfriend basically was cheating on her for the past 6 months and his new girlfriend is pregnant is just the icing on the cake. With nowhere to go, she decides it’s time to visit her aunt May in Spain. Who she hasn’t seen in many many years.

Abi knows that she needs to get her life back on track and swears off men because she feels as though she can’t trust them. I could see where she is coming from because her father left her when she was younger and her ex was cheating on her. I am sure many would feel the same way.

Abi quickly gets a job to support herself with Sublime Retreats and also helps to organize her aunt’s gallery shows along with a protest. It seems like a developer is coming in to build on a green space that is used by a local orphanage and a nature park. Will they be able to stop this from happening or is it too late?

Enter Gabe. We don’t know much about Gabe at first. I thought he was a bit arrogant and was happening he would not be like this the whole way through the story. He was very reserved. He clearly didn’t make a great first impression to Abi in the beginning and you definitely could feel the attraction between the two of them as the story progressed.

Can Gabe break down the walls and trust that Abi has built up or will Gabe just be another man she can’t trust when she finds out what he was really in San Sebastian to do?

This was a really quick one-sitting read for me and I could not have picked a better day to read it because I read this on a day when it snowed all day long. I am now at the point of being tired of winter and longing for the summer days.

This was such a fun read that I couldn’t put it down because I needed to know what was going to happen next.

Author Bio –
Joy lives on the seductive island of Corfu with her four dogs and an embarrassing number of cats.

Her many years working in the tourist industry on this sunny isle and her love of all things literary inspired her first novel Corfu Capers which recently hit the #1 spot in Parenting and Family humour much to her delight.

She loves to cook, dance and drink wine, usually at the same time, and is currently working on her next book, due to be released later this year.

She also loves to travel, absolutely anywhere, and is looking forward to jumping on a plane!

Social Media Links –
https://twitter.com/JoySkye4
https://www.instagram.com/joys.kye/
https://www.facebook.com/JoySkyeAuthor
https://www.tiktok.com/@joyskyeauthor

A Night To Die For by Lisa Schroeder

Genre: Young Adult Horror
Publishing date: March 1st, 2022

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indigo | IndieBound

Synopsis:

The Night Of meets Carrie when a boy finds a girl’s body in the ditch on prom night…and becomes the primary suspect in her murder.

All Mario wants is one normal night before he graduates. He’s spent most of high school riding solo and gaming with his only friend, Lucas. But when his mom asks him to take Elana Dexter to the prom as a favor to her father, his mother’s boss, he figures this might be his chance to be less of a loner.

Only, the night takes a turn quickly. First, Mario gets crowned Prom King alongside the school’s it-girl, Maribelle Starr. Which is weird enough. But what’s weirder is that when they put the crown on his head, hundreds of worms slither out of it and all over Mario. Just when Mario thought the night couldn’t get any worse, he sees something on the side of the road while driving Elana home. That something is Prom Queen Maribelle Starr—murdered and left for dead.

All Mario wanted was to go to prom…but somehow, he ended up in hell.

Underlined is a line of totally addictive romance, thriller, and horror paperback original titles coming to you fast and furious each month. Enjoy everything you want to read the way you want to read it.

Before I begin my review I quickly have to thank TBR and Beyond Tours for allowing me to be a part of this book tour and for providing an eArc of the book to read for my review stop today.

Do you ever read a book by an author you never read before and wonder why you have never read this author before? Well, that was the case for me, why have I not read Lisa’s books before this? If they are anything like this one then I definitely need to check them out.

A Night to Die is told in first-person narratives by almost a dozen characters involved in prom night.

The book opens up with Mirabelle, the prom queen at the prom dancing with the prom king, Mario. Then the next thing a deputy spots Mario on the side of the road looking into a ditch at dead prom queen. How did she get there? Did Mario have something to do with it? No one knows for sure because his date is drunk in the passenger seat of his truck. One thing that piqued my curiosity was how fast a deputy was on the scene. Was he just driving around because it was prom night? Mario is instantly arrested not for murder but for contributing to the delinquency of a minor because his date was drunk. But that quickly changes when new evidence comes to light.

Then enters Parker, her boyfriend. He had plenty of motive but he can’t recall what happened after he dropped her home because he went home to drink after she broke up with him. Could he have done it because he doesn’t remember what happened?

As the story progresses we soon realize that Mirabelle was leading a whole other life that no one really knew about.

Lucas, Mario’s best friend knows he can’t let his friend who is innocent go to jail for a crime he never committed so he decides to dig around in hopes of finding out what really happened since the cops are focused on Mario. Will Lucas be able to crack the case?

I ended up reading this in one sitting because I was instantly hooked. I wanted to know who killed Mirabelle. I have to admit that for the first 3/4 of the book I really didn’t have a clue and was shocked at the end. I didn’t really see that coming but once I sat back and reflected on the book I could see it and why it lead the person to do it. There was definitely plenty of twists and turns to keep you on your toes in guessing who the killer was. The storyline was fast-paced which I love in mystery/thriller kinds of books.

I loved the format of the book. Not only was it written but it also included Twitter messages, text messages, press releases, newspaper articles, and also letters. I also think that those are fun elements to a book. This was definitely a quick read with very short chapters.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

TOUR SCHEDULE:

February 28th
Stuck in Fiction – Promotional Post
Struck by Stories – Review & Mood Board
The Book View – Mood Board

March 1st
Confessions of a YA Reader – Promotional Post
Cindy’s Love of Books – Review
thebookwiccan – Review & Playlist

March 2nd
Pages & Plots – Promotional Post
The Girl Who Reads – Review
Books With Michelle – Top 5 Reasons to Read A Night to Die For & Mood Board
PopTheButterfly Reads – Review

March 3rd
AndOnSheReads – Review
Kait Plus Books – Promotional Post
BookMeSomeTime – Review

March 4th
The Book Dutchesses – Promotional Post
Artfully Bookish – Review, Favorite Quotes & Mood Board
Monogamist Reader – Promotional Post
Book Corner – Review

March 5th
Nine Bookish Lives – Promotional Post
Jen Jen Reviews – Review
Reading Stewardess – Review & Playlist

March 6th
Rae’s Reading Lounge – Review & Favorite Quotes
Book Lover’s Book Reviews – Promotional Post
Just a Gal and Her Books – Review

To view the Instagram schedule, please click HERE.