Book Blitz Storm of Hope by Leila Tualla

Storm of Hope banner
This is my stop during the book blitz for Storm of Hope by Leila Tualla. This book blitz is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The book blitz runs from 1 till 7 August. See the tour schedule here.

Storm of HopeStorm of Hope
By Leila Tualla
Genre: Non Fiction/ Inspirational/ memoir/ poetry
Release Date: 21 July, 2017

Blurb:
Storm of Hope: God, Preeclampsia, Depression and me is a memoir told in journal entries and poetry from a mom who was diagnosed with preeclampsia. The diagnosis with her second pregnancy propelled the author into a “postpartum forest where the trees of doubt, sorrow, anger and rage loomed all around me.” What becomes to the author and her second baby gives way to hope and a way out of the darkness.

Storm of Hope full wrap

You can add Storm of Hope to your to-read list on Goodreads

You can buy your copy of Storm of Hope on Amazon

Storm of Hope graphic

Leila TuallaAbout the Author:
Leila Tualla is a Filipino American writer, poet, and Christian author. She is a preeclampsia survivor and advocate, and blogs about “life after preeclampsia,” at www.tuallaleila.blogspot.com. After her second baby, Leila had postpartum depression. She is thankful that her family and those who supported her, stood with her and helped pull her out of her darkness. Her faith in Christ was, and continues to be, her daily lifeline. Leila is humbled daily by God’s saving grace.

When she’s not writing about her preeclampsia or postpartum journey, or chasing after her tiny miracle bosses, she can also be found buried in books. Leila reads various novels throughout the year and her book reviews can be found at www.leilatualla.com.

You can find and contact Leila Tualla here:
Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the book blitz of Storm of Hope. One winner will win a signed paperback copy of Storm of Hope by Leila Tualla. US Only.

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Side of the Road

I heard the loud unmistakable sound of the horn from an 18-wheeler, just as the wind moved my little red SUV as it passed by. I barely look up.

I am currently pulled over on the shoulder of I-45 during morning rush hour traffic. The tsunami of this unnamed emotion propelled me to pull over so I can ride this out. Its waves begin with sadness, quickly peeking with horror and guilt, and a crescendo of rage and jealousy.

As the horns and cars whizz by me going 75 miles per hour, I had a sudden thought that I would be okay if I died today. My hazard lights were on but seriously, no one pays attention to stranded motorists. There are hundreds of distracted drivers around me, all hoping to make it to work or school or somewhere they deemed important.

A knock on my door finally pulled me out of my ocean. It’s a police officer. Just great.

“You alright, ma’am?” I hear as I roll down my window. I noted that the worry in his tone did not quite match the wariness in his features.

“Yes,” I lie. “I’m sorry, officer.” I wave at the mess that I’m sure I looked.

“I just had a baby and today is my first day back to work.” I lie again.

He nodded. The wariness was gone, replaced with some relief and understanding. I’m wondering what put the distrust there. “I understand. My wife had some trouble going back to work, too.”

“It’s tough,” I respond, wiping away my tears, “but no worries, officer. As soon as you let me go, I promise I will drive to the closest Starbucks, clean up, and buy myself a cup of coffee.”

He smiled. “Ok, but promise that next time you’re having, uh…,”

“A meltdown?” I supply gently.

“A moment,” he cleared his throat. “You won’t have one of your moments here. It’s dangerous, you know. Get off the highway. It’s safer.”

I nod in earnest. “Yes, yes, I promise.”

He gives me a single nod and from my rearview mirror, I watch him walk back to his patrol car. I signal and see an opening in the line of commuters and off I go. I sighed. The day was just beginning and I already wish for the end.

What I didn’t tell the officer was that it was my month back into work. I had somehow started a typical pattern of crippling anxiety every Monday morning on my commute. By Wednesday afternoon, I wondered why I needed to hyperventilate. I was usually back to myself by Thursday.

This has to be remnants of post pregnancy hormones, right?


banner Lola's Blog Tours

Sundays In Bed With & Vacation 2017 Read-A-Thon

Welcome to our Sundays In Bed With… Meme! The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

This is being hosted by two of the sweetest people I have to privilege of knowing in real life Kate and Kim. Sadly we don’t talk like we use to because you know real life happens but there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of them both.

Good Morning everyone. Not sure if I am curled up somewhere reading this morning because I am still on vacation and I am pre-scheduling this before I leave. I will have access to the internet but very limited so I won’t be able to undate this post until my next Sundays In Bed With a Book which I am sure will filled with great books I read this past week.

 

 

So here is the list of physical books I am bringing with me:

  1. Every Last Lie by Mary Kubica
  2. The Marriage Pact by Michelle Richmond
  3. The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
  4. The Breakdown by B.A Paris
  5. That Night by Chevy Stevens
  6. The Cage by Megan Shepherd
  7. The Hunt by Megan Shepherd

Here is the list of ebooks/earcs that I have on my kindle app that I really need/have to get through because they were publisher sent and/or books for upcoming tours I am on:

  1. Mask of Shadow by Lindsey Miller
  2. Sleeper by MacKenzie Cadenhead
  3. Kiss Me In New York by Catherine Rider
  4. Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas by Terry Spear
  5. Donna by V.C Andrews
  6. The Third Kiss by Isabelle Ronin
  7. Seven Days of Us by Francesca Hornak

I know this seems like a lot of books to bring on vacation but I will be 8+ hours in a car for two days there and then the same back and I can’t read solely off my iPad although I wish I could. I am hoping to be able to knock off hopefully all these books but even to make any kind of dent in the pile will be great.

My goal during this whole Vacation 2017 Read-A-Thon is to clear up the ebooks because thats all I have from my netgalley account sitting waiting to be read and I have been trying to be good about keeping that list short and sweet.

Do you do a lot of reading on vacation? Do you bring alot of books with you on vacation? I think this is the most I have ever taken in physical books with me.

 

Review: The Way it Hurts by Patty Blount

Review: The Way it Hurts by Patty BlountThe Way It Hurts by Patty Blount
Published by Sourcebooks Fire on August 1st 2017
Pages: 352
Goodreads

There may be two sides to every story, but sometimes there's only one way to set things right...
Music is Elijah's life. His band plays loud and hard, and he'll do anything to get them a big break. He needs that success to help take care of his sister, who has special needs. So he'd rather be practicing when his friends drag him to a musical in the next town...until the lead starts to sing.
Kristen dreams of a career on stage like her grandmother's. She knows she needs an edge to get into a competitive theater program―and being the star in her high school musical isn't going to cut it. The applause and the attention only encourage her to work harder.
Elijah can't take his eyes off of Kristen's performance, and his swooning face is captured on camera and posted with an out-of-context comment. It goes viral. Suddenly, Elijah and Kristen are in a new spotlight as the online backlash spins out of control. And the consequences are bigger than they both could have ever imagined because these threats don't stay online...they follow them into real life.

I have to begin by saying I have always heard amazing things about Patty Blount’s and I have to admit that I have  never read any despite the fact I have Send, TMI and Some Boys sitting on my bookshelf waiting to be read. So when I heard she had a new book coming out called The Way it Hurts I figured now would be the time that I should finally review one, so thanks to Sourcebooks Fire for allowing me to be a part of the tour for this book.

Going into The Way it Hurts I had no expectations and having to worry did this book compare to her previous ones because this is a brand new author for me and I have to say after reading this I will definitely be picking up those books from my TBR to read in the next month or so.

The Way it Hurts has two main characters Kristen and Eli. They are both high school students but attend different high schools. Kristen is a theatre girl who sings, dances and acts. She is hoping to get accepted into a theatre program but she gets rejected and isn’t happy about that. Eli (Elijah) is the lead singer and bass player for the band Ride Out. They play heavy metal music.

Being that this is 2017 Eli, has the band online and their group page drives heavy criticism about their music and one of their critiques is Kristen and she is a no holds barred girl but no one really knows its her and she has no idea who is replying back to her.

Kristen is performing in her high school’s muscial version of Cats and Eli hears her sings and he wants her for the band amongst strong criticism from his band. Eli things that this is the thing they need to bring them to the next level to get them where they need to finally be after years of hard work. For Kristen she things this would be the perfect thing to add to her resume and give her the edge that she needs to stand out.

The one thing that Kristen doesn’t realize is that being a part of this will come at a price, can she handle it? Finally the band is getting recognized but with the raise of popularity Kristen is being singled out and getting creepy and threatening messages on social media. It was one thing being online but now its starting to creep into her real life.

I have mixed feelings about Eli he is that bad boy rocker who has the reputation of being a player. I didn’t really like that side of him because thats just not my thing but the thing that I loved of Eli was his love for his sister who has autism. You can truly see he cares about her and wants to look after her. This is the reason he wants the band to become big so that he can have her at home with all the special help she needs.

As for Kristen I have to say that I was on the fence with her as well. I liked that she was a tell it like it is but I found her to be a little judgemental about things. I for one don’t think she should have gotten all the hate on social media but I think in this day and age its so easy for someone to be hateful to a person when they don’t have to be face to face with them. Its easy to be a meany or a bully behind the screen. No one realizes how words can truly affect a person.

I have to say I applaud Patty for touching on this topic and writing about it. Social media can be such a double standard for both men and women and its a shame.

This was a great read and I highly recommend it.

 

Sundays in Bed With & Vacation 2017 Read-A-Thon

 

 

Welcome to our Sundays In Bed With… Meme! The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

This is being hosted by two of the sweetest people I have to privilege of knowing in real life Kate and Kim. Sadly we don’t talk like we use to because you know real life happens but there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of them both.

This past week I did finish:

Under Rose-Tainted Skies

The Way It Hurts by Patty Blount

Since I will be away this upcoming week I have no idea what book I am currently reading (because I will be starting a new read) but you can see from the list below the books I am bringing on vacation with me. I hope you were able to stay curled up in bed reading.

Hopefully by the time this goes up on my blog we are officially on vacation and have left the house for our  two day drive to our destination. I am hoping that with the two day drive there and then two day drive back that I will be able to cram a lot of reading in because I don’t think I will get much reading done while we are at our location because we will be with family, sight seeing and hopefully some shopping but I am sure I will be reading a bit at night to relax and unwind.

So here is the list of physical books I am bringing with me:

  1. Every Last Lie by Mary Kubica
  2. The Marriage Pact by Michelle Richmond
  3. The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
  4. The Breakdown by B.A Paris
  5. That Night by Chevy Stevens
  6. The Cage by Megan Shepherd
  7. The Hunt by Megan Shepherd

Here is the list of ebooks/earcs that I have on my kindle app that I really need/have to get through because they were publisher sent and/or books for upcoming tours I am on:

  1. Mask of Shadow by Lindsey Miller
  2. Sleeper by MacKenzie Cadenhead
  3. Kiss Me In New York by Catherine Rider
  4. Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas by Terry Spear
  5. Donna by V.C Andrews
  6. The Third Kiss by Isabelle Ronin
  7. Seven Days of Us by Francesca Hornak

I know this seems like a lot of books to bring on vacation but I will be 8+ hours in a car for two days there and then the same back and I can’t read solely off my iPad although I wish I could. I am hoping to be able to knock off hopefully all these books but even to make any kind of dent in the pile will be great.

My goal during this whole Vacation 2017 Read-A-Thon is to clear up the ebooks because thats all I have from my netgalley account sitting waiting to be read and I have been trying to be good about keeping that list short and sweet.

Do you do a lot of reading on vacation?

 

July 2017 Books Unhauling

Good morning everyone. For the past two years I have been sharing with you the books that I have unhauled from my collection. I started doing this in 2015 and at that time I  released 211 books and then last year due to life happening I missed months sharing what I unhauled and it went undocumented so the only number I have is 124 from the months I did share.

I am going to make 2017 a better year in sharing what books I am unhauling. As a book blogger and a book reader I don’t tend to keep the books once I read them unless there is a special meaning for them, so I always pass them along to friends/family and if they don’t want I bring to good will.

I am slowly beginning the task of purging the massive book collection I have in boxes in my basement this summer and this is just the beginning of what will probably be a massive unhauling post. It needs to be done and what better time then now to do it right?

So lets get right into July and take a look at what I unhauled this month:

  1. The House Husband by James Patterson with Duane Swierczynski
  2. French Twist by James Patterson with Richard DiLallo
  3. The Third Wife by Lisa Jewell
  4. The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
  5. Disclaimer by Renee Knight

Total books released this month: 5

Total books released in 2017: 113

Total books released in 2016: 124

Total books released in 2015: 211

July 2017 Books Bought

Since starting my blog back in August of 2008 I always try to share what books I get with you so that you can see what I will be reading and I am always looking for a place to link them so that others can see them so from now on I will be sharing my links on Tynga’s Reviews and Reading Reality. As Marlene has offered to co-host Stacking The Shelves with Tynga’s Reviews. Marlene is a new to be blogger and I look forward to checking out her blog.

As you can see I switched this up and will be posting monthly because  I have to say since doing this instead of posting the books in my weekly haul I am much more aware of the books that I am buying.

I am trying to get better with my book buying and trying to stick to sales, bargain books or reward plum bonus point events. As a book lover its hard not to buy books.

As you can see this month is much calmer in books that I bought and I have to say that I am quite impressed. Most of these are going to be my vacation reads.

  1. The Land of Stories Worlds Collide Book 6 in the series by  Chris Colfer
  2. The Break Down by B.A Paris
  3. The Cage by Megan Shepherd (book 1 in The Cage triology)
  4. The Hunt by Megan Shepherd (book 2 in The Cage triology)
  5. That Night by Chevy Stevens (found this in the bargain section)
  6. The Bookseller by Cynthia Swanson (found this in the bargain section)

Total books bought this month: 6
Total books bought this month (Michael): 0

Total books read from this months haul: 0

Total books bought in 2017: 73

Total books read in 2017: 23

Sunday’s In Bed With….

Welcome to our Sundays In Bed With… Meme! The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

This is being hosted by two of the sweetest people I have to privilege of knowing in real life Kate and Kim. Sadly we don’t talk like we use to because you know real life happens but there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think of them both.

For some reason this never went up on the blog this week and when I realized it I noticed it was in draft so sorry about that. Well anyways I really didn’t get the chance to lay in bed and read because I had to get up to get some groceries down and a few other errands before we have to go to a family dinner. I did squeeze a little reading it. (Please note that I am editing this on Thursday but will back schedule it for Sunday)

So I did finish reading:

Bittersweet Dreams

Corliss (Girls of Spindrift, #1)

The second book in the Girls of Spindrift, Donna I only got notification this week that I was granted accesses for it so I will read that next week.

I then picked up and read:

Orbiting Jupiter

I am currently reading this and a little less then half way through this so I should be finished that this week:

Under Rose-Tainted Skies

I also need to get this one read this week because I am part of a blog tour for this and its on my kindle app:

The Way It Hurts by Patty Blount

What are you reading today? Have you read any of these?