Saturday 31 May 2014

Favourite Reads of the Year so Far + Giveaway


Hi everyone! I thought I'd do a post with all my favourite reads of the year seeing as we're now half way through the year (scary!).

Reading-wise I'm having a pretty good year and have read over 70 books! So I should definitely hit my Goodreads target of 100 at this rate :)

So below are my fave reads of the year so far (January-May)...

(Make sure to enter the giveaway at the end of the post! And click on the covers to be taken to the book' Goodreads page.)



January:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18190280-tiger-lilyhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18522974-cursed?ac=1https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18163294-antigoddess



February:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17118893-the-fault-in-our-starshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9721690-starcrossed




March:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19194602-shattered-veil?ac=1https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17455585-white-hot-kiss?ac=1https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18517479-divergent




April:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13041606-dreamlesshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16146662-goddesshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18114890-this-song-will-save-your-life




May:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18211018-pandemic?ac=1https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6854741-retribution-fallshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17878473-the-57-lives-of-alex-wayfare?ac=1https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7492383-the-black-lung-captain






 One winner will receive their choice of one of the above books (INT as long as The Book Depository ships to you)

I will also give another winner a $10 Amazon gift card.

Good luck!


May Recap

Read:







Fave Books of the Month:






Reviews:

http://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-talented-by-sophie-davis.htmlhttp://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-pandemic-by-yvonne-ventresca.htmlhttp://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/blog-tour-review-fave-quotes-giveaway.html

http://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/blog-tour-review-fave-quotes-torn-away.htmlhttp://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-fifty-seven-lives-of-alex.htmlhttp://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-panic-by-lauren-oliver.html

http://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-biggest-flirts-by-jennifer-echols.htmlhttp://jesswatkinsauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-fearless-by-emma-pass.html



What were your fave reads this month?

Book Blitz + Giveaway - Blood Oath (The Secret of the Halflings, #1) by Samantha Coville



Blood Oath (The Secret of the Halflings #1) by Samantha Coville 

Release Date: 04/29/14 


Summary from Goodreads: 

Raya Sarian has always known she was different. The water calls to her in a way that isn't human. She has seen things that would scar anyone for life. And her father has been non existent in her childhood.
Because he is a Siren.
A blood drinker.
A monster.
And now she must live with him in a world populated with enemies and dangerous friends. Can she survive the year? 




Buy Links: 








About the Author 


Samantha Coville is an editor and literary critic at her website, Sammy the Bookworm. 
She’s been writing short stories for six years and has appeared in magazines, both in print and online. 
When she’s not doing something book related, she is singing in her church choir or enjoying one of the theme parks in her home state of Florida. 






Author Links: 











Excerpt:

Prologue 

It had seemed like a great idea eleven years ago, but, now, with Elder Eden staring him down like he was a disobedient child, Christopher Sarian feared that maybe it wasn’t as brilliant as he had originally thought. Her aqua eyes bore into his and he shifted in his seat, uncomfortable with the situation he had put himself in. 
Her voice was silky smooth and strong, even in her old age. It also had a slight hiss to it when she was angered. That hiss seeped through in her words to Christopher. “No one will accept her here; her kind is not welcome by others. You can try to win my approval all you want, but the others will make her miserable. Is that really the best for the child?” 
 “She will be seventeen, you know.” In comparison to the Elder’s, his voice was small and quiet. “I do know, Christopher, and I know that her presence would bring unrest to our already shaky colony.” Her wrinkled and dainty hands rested softly on the large oak table that was usually occupied by the Elders of the area. Now it was just her and him and the uneasy air between them.
He cleared his throat a little. He was usually so sure of himself and his power over everyone, but now he was reminded that the Elders would always be the ones in charge no matter who had the crown. But that had its upsides; they were a great source of advice and information. They hadn’t failed him yet. “I haven’t seen her for eleven years, Eden. She’ll be an adult soon and she’ll leave me behind forever. I want to see her, and claim her as my daughter, for one last time before then.” 
Eden sighed and took a seat in her usual high back chair. She rubbed her temples in slow circles and then lifted her eyes to the man she had watched grow over the years. When Christopher had been crowned, she had kept a business relationship between them, calling him by his title and expecting the same back. But they were far more than that, they were family though not by blood. “Fine. You are my Lord after all. But if anything goes awry during her time here,” she threatened. 
“Everything will go perfectly, I promise.” 
She pointed a firm finger at him accusingly, but a faint smile crossed her full lips. “We’ll see about that, young man!”
  




Open internationally





Blitz organised by:

http://www.yaboundbooktours.blogspot.co.uk/

Thursday 29 May 2014

Review - The Fearless by Emma Pass



Title: The Fearless
Author: Emma Pass
Pages: 400
Publisher: RHCP Digital
Release date: 24th April 2014

Blurb from Goodreads:    

The Fearless. An army, powered by an incredible new serum that makes each soldier stronger, sharper, faster than their enemies. Intended as a force for good, the serum has a terrible side-effect - anyone who takes it is stripped of all humanity, empathy, love. And as the Fearless sweep through the country, forcing the serum on anyone in their path, society becomes a living nightmare.
Cass remembers the night they passed through her village. Her father was Altered. Her mother died soon after. All Cass has left is her little brother - and when Jory is snatched by the Fearless and taken to their hellish lair, Cass must risk everything to get him back.






My Review:

*I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Random House Children’s Publishers UK and Emma Pass*

3/5 stars


For seven years Cass has lived on Hope island ever since The Fearless stormed through the country. The Fearless were born from a cure for post-tramatic stress that stopped fear and got into enemy hands. Cass only has her brother left and when he is taken by the Fearless she will risk everything to get him back.


It took me a while to get into this and to start with I found Cass annoying. 
I really didn't like the love triangle. 
There were things that I saw coming and things that I didn't. 
I didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would.


Overall this only just gets three stars as I found it slightly disappointing.

  

Book Blitz + Giveaway - Crane by Stacey Rourke



Crane by Stacey Rourke 

Publication date: May 26th 2014
Genres: New Adult, Paranormal

Synopsis:

The Horseman is unending,
his presence shan’t lessen.
If you break the curse,
you become the legend.

Washington Irving and Rip Van Winkle had no choice but to cover up the deadly truth behind Ichabod Crane’s disappearance. Centuries later, a Crane returns to Sleepy Hollow awakening macabre secrets once believed to be buried deep.

What if the monster that spawned the legend lived within you?

Now, Ireland Crane, reeling from a break-up and seeking a fresh start, must rely on the newly awakened Rip Van Winkle to discover the key to channeling the darkness swirling within her. Bodies are piling high and Ireland is the only one that can save Sleepy Hollow by embracing her own damning curse.

But is anyone truly safe when the Horseman rides?





Purchase:








AUTHOR BIO
 
RONE Award Winner for Best YA Paranormal Work of 2012 for Embrace, a Gryphon Series Novel
Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012
Turning Pages Magazine Winner for Best YA book of 2013 & Best Teen Book of 2013

Stacey Rourke lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant, dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction  and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head. Mark your calendars! Her latest literary adventure, Crane, will release May 26, 2014. She is currently hard at work on the continuations of this thrilling Legends Saga, as well as other literary projects.
Visit her at www.staceyrourke.com
diaryofasemi-crazyauthor.blogspot.com
Facebook
or on Twitter @Rourkewrites.




Excerpt:

The plush terry cloth robe slipped from Ireland’s shoulders with a whispering caress before pooling in a heap around her ankles. Marble tiles chilled her bare feet as she stepped into the walk-in shower. The tips of her fingers slid across stainless steel. With a flick of her wrist, the trio of showerheads flowed to life. Welcoming heat came at her from all angles, pulsating over her curves with a rhythmic seduction. Ireland turned, a groan escaping her as the streams massaged all the right places. Steam rose, fogging the handle and creating a cloud of humidity that hugged her frame. Tipping her head back, she let the droplets rain down on her face and across her closed lids. Her lips parted, welcoming the rush of warmth that flooded between them. Until it assaulted her tongue with a rush of coppery warmth that clamped her throat shut with a wretched heave. Her hands cupped to catch the droplets, her eyes widening as thick crimson pooled in her palms, seeping between her ivory fingers. Formerly white tiles were now smattered and smeared with blackish-red gore that sprayed from the nozzles. Ireland threw herself from the shower, her feet slipping beneath her. She reached out to steady herself, but found nothing to hold on to. Nothing there to pull her back from the brink, except her own need for self-preservation … and a shadowed silhouette in the corner. Instinctively, she covered herself with her arms. Squinting, she craned her neck to see the figure that was slowly turning to face her.
“Mason?” Her voice echoed around her before she could even speak it.
He stared straight ahead with fixed, unseeing eyes. Blood trailed down his face from various points of origin, soaking the front of his shirt. “Cloak of night, brings Horseman’s plight. His pricy toll, will be a soul.”
“Mason? Are you okay?”
A hard blink and his eyes found focus on her. A desperate panic flared his nostrils, forcing his breath to come fast and ragged. “Help me, you have to help me,” he pleaded, his teeth pink with the blood that streamed past his lips.
Her trembling hand reached for him, then recoiled at her own inept state of confusion. “H-how? What do I do?”
“You have to save us,” Mason’s words became more garbled by the fresh rush of gore that bubbled up the back of his throat. His once handsome face contorted in rage. Leaning forward he balled his fists and screamed with a force that bulged the tendons of his neck, “Save us!” 






Blitz-wide giveaway

Open to US/INT