Saturday, 29 August 2015

SERIES PROMOTION - THE TALA CHRONICLES BY PATRICIA LA BARBERA

Title: The Wolf's Daughter
Series: The Tala Chronicles
Author: Patricia La Barbera
Publisher: World Castle Publishing
Release Date: March 2013

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When her mother dies, Tala returns to her New Hampshire hometown, and violent memories assault her. She struggles against supernatural powers to save her former high-school boyfriend, Matt. Tala stays alone in the family’s bleak house, which is next door to a cemetery. She finds amulets, macabre newspaper photos, and her grandmother’s diary, all hinting at an animalistic strain, for which a remedy may or may not exist. Can she prevent her enemy, Willis Sharp, from obtaining an amulet, which would increase his power and his danger to Tala and Matt? Can her grandmother’s diary lead her to a man accused of revolting brutality, but the only one who can help her? And will she risk confronting him by traveling through the wilderness of wolf territory?

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Title: The Wolf's Revenge
Series: The Tala Chronicles
Author: Patricia La Barbera
Publisher: World Castle Publishing
Release Date: 11th June 2013

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In this second book of The Tala Chronicles, Tala makes a shocking discovery about her enemy, Willis Sharp, after the violence at her uncle’s cottage. She also realizes the ritual her uncle performed solved only part of Matt’s problem. Tala’s only hope to save Matt involves going with him to Oregon and visiting a werewolf pack who may help her...if they don’t kill her first. A mysterious couple tells her where the pack lives and that she must visit them alone. And to go there only during the day. Will she risk her life and go to them despite facing the possibility her actions could lead to Matt’s death? 

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Title: Wolf Slayer
Series: The Tala Chronicles
Author: Patricia La Barbera
Publisher: World Castle Publishing
Release Date: 20th June 2014

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Matt’s life depends on Tala’s decision. Should she stay with Jeremiah and his pack or go with Michael, the Wolf Slayer? Jeremiah claims his access to other werewolves will give her a better chance of finding a way to break Matt’s curse. But Michael says werewolves are banned from the places she’s most likely to find a cure. He tries to convince her to become a Slayer so she can travel with him. Will she remain under the protection of Jeremiah’s pack, or will she conquer her fear of the unknown and set out with Michael?

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Title: The Wolf Slayer
Series: The Tala Chronicles
Author: Patricia La Barbera
Publisher: World Castle Publishing
Release Date: 5th December 2014

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In WOLF CULT, the fourth book in THE TALA CHRONICLES, Tala and Matt think they've solved their werewolf problems. However, a mysterious woman tells Tala a frightening prophecy. Tala and Matt again find themselves thrown into a whirlpool of pursuit and violence. But this time the stakes are much higher.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Originally from New York City, Patricia La Barbera moved to Oklahoma with her husband when they were newlyweds. She spent eleven years of discovery there and developed a deep respect for Native Americans. 

When they moved to Florida, she went back to college and received a BA and an MFA in creative writing. Besides being an author, Patricia’s a freelance editor, specializing in genre novels and short stories. She’s an active member of the Horror Writers Association and a member of Mystery Writers of America and Mensa. Patricia's had fiction and poetry published in a variety of journals and in three anthologies. She's also a writing-contest judge. 

In addition to the first three books in The Tala Chronicles, she’s written a mystery novella, The Celtic Crow Murders. 

Patricia’s grateful to her hometown fire department who sponsored the first writing contest she won for her fire-prevention essay when she was in the third grade. And she forgives the teacher who told her in front of the class that she must have had a brain tumor when she wrote a story about a cat from outer space. But she does wonder what that teacher would think about her paranormal romance novels. 

Patricia now lives on the west coast of Florida with her husband and her mews, Maeve. She loves the sunshine and swimming in the gulf. 

Patricia hopes her readers enjoy her stories as much as she enjoys writing them. She’s working on the fourth book of The Tala Chronicles. Learn more about the author by visiting her website.http://www.patricialabarbera.com
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Friday, 28 August 2015

BLOG TOUR - RESISTANCE SERIES BY TRACY LAWSON

Title: Counteract
Series: Resistance
Author: Tracy Lawson
Release Date: 6th August 2014

BLURB supplied by PR By The Book
Office of Civilian Safety and Defense has enacted a long list of Civilian Restrictions designed to keep the people safe from frequent terrorist attacks, but it hasn’t worked: as the story opens, the threat of a chemical weapons attack is literally hanging over everyone’s heads.
Careen The Resistance Series takes place in a near-future version of the United States. The powerful takes the OCSD’s offered antidote, but the side effects cause her to hallucinate. Her erratic behavior attracts the attention of a young law enforcement officer, who mistakenly pegs her as a dissident. Careen doesn’t realize the antidote is causing her confusion…until she runs out on the day of the anticipated attack.

 Tommy, recuperating from injuries sustained in a recent auto accident, is unaware that there’s a link between that accident, which killed his parents, and the chemical weapons attack that threatens him now. When he discovers that working out before he takes his dose of the antidote helps him feel more like himself, he defies the rules to regain his strength and his sanity. On the day of the attack, he meets Careen, who just might be the girl of his dreams, and tries to save her by sharing his last dose of the antidote, even though doing so could potentially hasten his own death.


What Careen and Tommy learn about the true nature of the terrorist threat spurs them to take action; their decisions lead them to run afoul of local law enforcement, team up with an underground resistance group, and ultimately take their quest for the truth to the highest reaches of the United States government.

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Title: Resist
Series: Resistance
Author: Tracy Lawson
Release Date: 4th August 2015

BLURB supplied by PR By The Book
Resist, picks up this fast-paced dystopian series with the resistance forming against injustice.
After their plan to rescue a group of dissenters imprisoned by the OCSD spins out of control, Tommy and Careen are on the run, dodging the quadrant marshals in a headlong dash for the remote mountain headquarters of the Resistance.

Their budding relationship is tested when an attempt to spark a revolution goes awry, and the pair move toward an inevitable confrontation with the forces that terrorize the nation. Will their differing viewpoints drive a wedge between them? And where does love fit in when you’re trying to overthrow the government?


PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK 


Q & A
with
Tracy Lawson
by PR By The Book
Tracy Lawson is an award-winning author of two nonfiction books, and The Resistance Series is her first in the world of young adult novels. Tracy lives in Dallas with her husband, daughter and three spoiled cats.

What was the inspiration behind The Resistance Series?
I was mentoring a friend of my daughter’s when the initial idea for Counteract came about. Chase is a pretty sharp guy and an excellent writer—and when he was in high school I had a lot of fun working with him and editing some of his short stories. We had finished working on a story about baseball, a broken nose, and a broken heart, and were ready to start something new, when he suggested we write scenes in response to the prompt: “What if everyone were on LSD and all thoughts were communal?” It was certainly thought provoking! Chase created the characters Tommy and Eduardo, I created Careen, and right away, we knew we were onto something. Obviously, the story morphed and changed a lot before it became the finished version of Counteract—but that was how it all began.

Did you always plan to write another book in the series?
I let my husband read the first draft of Counteract when I was about a third of the way through the original outline. He was enthusiastic and supportive and suggested developing a story line that could be carried forward if I chose to make Counteract the first in a series.
I liked the idea of doing more than one book about Tommy and Careen, and as I wrote the rest of the first draft, I pinpointed elements of the story I’d need to develop and expand to pave the way for a series.

How do the characters of Tommy and Careen develop in Resist?
Tommy and Careen are law-abiding citizens until they accidentally discover that the Office of Civilian Safety and Defense lied about the terrorist attack and why it mandated the use of the Counteractive System of Defense drug. They go from being accepting and compliant to impulsively joining a rebel group that’s working to overthrow the oppressive government agency, without having a chance to think about what they’re doing and why.
They’ve only known each other for a week, and their relationship has progressed far too quickly—they became a team, then a couple, without really getting to know each other, and soon they realize they don’t have much in common.
Tommy’s all for the physical aspects of revolution, and is eager to learn about guns and explosives. Careen finds kindred spirits among the older leaders of the group, who are committed to sway the public’s allegiance away from the OCSD by waging a war of information. Her pacifistic approach clashes with his need to prove himself on the field of battle, and further complicates their partnership.

What do you enjoy about this series that cannot be found in any of your other books?
The Resistance Series is my first published fiction. My other book, Fips, Bots, Doggeries, and More, is based on a journal kept by my great-great-great grandfather during his family’s 1838 horse and wagon trip from Cincinnati to New York City.

I did a ton of research before writing that book, and amassed two filing cabinet drawers full of information related to the 22-page journal! During the publication process, I nearly went crazy double-checking all my facts and citations, and by the time the book went to print, I never wanted to see another footnote. Fiction? Yes, please!

Now that I’ve had a little break from footnotes, I’m enjoying writing another nonfiction history book. I’m planning to merge my two favorite genres and write some YA historical fiction sometime after I finish the Resistance Series.

The main characters in The Resistance Series are Tommy and Careen. Where did you find your inspiration for them? 
My characters are a little bit of me, and little bits of people around me, but as I spend time with them in the context of the story, they become less like people in the real world; I don’t stop developing them until they are individuals: unique and unlike anyone else.

Chase created Tommy, and at first I wasn’t as close to him as I was Careen. That changed as I wrote more scenes for Tommy—especially the scene when he and Careen meet. His reactions and his choices came from inside me; before long, he was unique and independent of any outside influence.

How does the Office of Civilian Safety and Defense (OCSD) differ from other dystopian governments in young adult series like The Hunger Games and Divergent?
In the Resistance Series, there has been no rebellion, no cataclysmic event. The dystopian world in which they live has been created by fear, engineered by an enemy masquerading as a protector.

The Office of Civilian Safety and Defense was created to protect against the rampant terrorism that has affected the nation for the better part of the twenty-first century. Little by little, the OCSD usurped power from the traditional three branches of the US government.

The OCSD’s long list of Civilian Restrictions was designed to maximize safety and security. Most people don’t consider themselves oppressed or fettered by their lack of freedom. Teenagers like Tommy and Careen don’t know things were ever different. They can’t remember a time when teenagers learned how to drive and went on dates to malls and movie theaters.

What elements test the relationship between Tommy and Careen in Resist?
Tommy and Careen had only each other to rely on in Counteract, and their relationship progressed quickly—perhaps a little too quickly.
Now they’ve joined the Resistance, and they’re part of a community for the first time. They have a hard time adjusting to the constant scrutiny, and Tommy laments about how their relationship seemed a lot less complicated when they were alone.   
Their philosophical differences about how to fight the OCSD drive a wedge between them, and interpersonal rivalries and jealousy test their budding relationship.

What do you hope readers take away from this book?
First and foremost, I want readers enjoy the story! I hope they relate to Tommy and Careen, and look forward to reading the next installment in the series.
Books for young adults often reflect the reader’s need to question authority and rebel against the rules set down by older generations; the Resistance Series looks at what can happen when people surrender our civil liberties in exchange for the promise of safety and security.
I hope readers understand that protagonists in dystopian books are often branded as outcasts or rebels because they question the restrictive rules of their societies—and that individuals who change the world rarely do so by going along with the herd.

What kind of research did you do for the series?
Please don’t call the police if you see what’s in my browser history! I’ve Googled the effects of various controlled substances, different types of explosives, and interrogation techniques.

I learned to shoot a handgun so that my characters’ first experiences with weapons would be authentic. At first it was scary, but now I enjoy going to the target range. I’m no Annie Oakley yet, but I’m at least as good as Scarlett O’Hara, who once saucily told Rhett Butler, “I can shoot straight, if I don’t have to shoot too far.”

 What made you want to write books for young readers?
I love reading YA, and I taught dance classes for twenty years before I got serious about writing. I spent a lot of time around my students, my daughter, and her friends, so it seemed natural to write for a teen audience.

How long did it take you to write Resist?  
I wrote Resist in a little over a year. It went a lot faster than Counteract (which took almost three years) because I knew the characters well and had planned ways to continue the story into the second book.

Do you have any interesting writing quirks?
I like to write with pen and paper—preferably outside. I sit quietly until one of the characters starts to speak, and then I write down what they say. Some days I’ll scribble for pages and pages, and when I look at the clock I’ll be surprised how much time has flown by! I usually let those pages sit for at least a few hours, sometimes a few days, before I transcribe them into the computer, and that’s where the scenes really begin to take shape.

As far as writing snacks go, I’m partial to sunflower seeds and Diet Dr Pepper!

What does your family think of your writing?
My family has been very supportive. My husband knows how to urge me on when I get discouraged, and my daughter says I’m a better choreographer now that I’ve become an author. I guess writing helped me refine how to advance a story through dance.

I haven’t shared much about what happens in Resist with my family. My five teenaged nieces can’t wait to read it, and I can’t wait to hear what they think!

Tell us where we can find your book and more information about you?
My books are available on Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle, and on Barnes & Noble’s online store. If you live near Columbus, Ohio, you can buy signed copies of my books at three independent stores: The Book Loft of German Village, Mary B’s, and Urban Emporium.

You can get the behind-the-scenes scoop on all things Resistance Series, see book trailers, and check out my blog at http://counteractbook.com. You can also find me on Twitter @TracySLawson and on Instagram as TracyLawsonAuthor.



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Thursday, 27 August 2015

BOOK PROMOTION - MARKED BY MOONLIGHT - SHIFTER WITCH BY KAREN VICTORIA TAVARES

Title: Marked By Moonlight
Series: Shifter Witch
Author: Karen Victoria Tavares
Release Date: 16th January 2015

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When a savage murder occurs in her family, a new world opens to Professor Brizza Lynn Greer. A supernatural world full of magick and mayhem. Brizza will have to battle an ancient power and come to terms with her own magick to get the vengeance she craves.


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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karen Tavares is a mother, teacher, bookworm & writer. She is addicted to flavored coffee and loves cheerleading, paranormal romance novels, and her pandora radio station. Her first novel Marked by Moonlight is now available.

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Wednesday, 26 August 2015

COVER COMMENTS - ONLY EVER YOURS BY LOUISE O'NEILL



 All three of the covers featured within this post fit the book very well. I like all three for different reasons. Do you have a preference? . . . .Which is your favourite? . . . and Why?. . .

Cover A

The colours and the feel of the cover suggest and artificial feel. The main feature on this cover is what I would describe as a "barbie" doll on the cover to represent the "perfection" women should strive for as dictated by society. The beautiful cascading blonde wavy hair, teamed with the sea blue eyes with long lush eyelashes and the perfect bright red bow lips. 
The byline on this cover which fits around the title, both before and after. "Choose A Girl . . . Only Ever Yours. . . To Own Forever" This byline really does fit the book and give's you a hint at the society and the way females are a commodity. 
Though I'd say endorsements on front covers are one of my pet hates, I should mention this cover has one by author Jeanette Winterson which say's "A dark dream. A vivid nightmare. . . O'Neill writes with a scalpel"
So would the cover alone make me pick this book up in a book store? Yes, it would, the cover images would attract my eye and then the byline would make me want to learn more about the book.

Cover B

The main colouring of this cover is also quite dark looking the central feature for the cover is a row of what look like mannequins that represent the eve's. They are arranged as though on a conveyer belt, as though manufactured in their masses. This representation fits the book very well as the eve's are treat more like objects than people. It plays on the point that the eve's are manufactured and designed to look similar, but are all an "ideal" shape and weight. The endorsement on this cover is by Marie Claire and says "Deep, dark and frighteningly believable. This story will stay with you for a long time" There is no byline in reference to the book on the cover. Instead wording on the cover informs us that the book won the Irish book awards newcomer of the year!

Cover C

The colour and feel of this cover is very pink and features a rather perfectly made up female, which does fit the imagery that the book gives us of the Eves. They must be perfectly made up at all times and are continually compared to each other. The byline of "Be good. Be pretty. Be chose." really fits really well with the theme that runs throughout the whole book.
It is one of my pet hates to have review quotes of the actual front cover so that something I'm not so keen on featured on this cover. The review quotes are from Marie Claire, and from Vagenda. The review quote from Vagenda compares this book to both Mean Girls and Magaret Attwood's Handmaids Tale. (which I sadly have not read yet even though it is in my favourite genre).

 Final Cover Thoughts 
So out of the three covers featured above which is your favourite and why?
As I have explained I like something about all the individual covers but I would have to say that my favourite on is still the one I saw the first when discovering this title and for me has to be Cover A. Though I do think that Cover B and Cover C would perhaps appeal more to an older reader too. All the covers have their own merits but to pick just one it has to be Cover A! 
Which cover would make YOU 
pick up this book from a bookstore shelf?


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REVIEW - ONLY EVER YOURS BY LOUISE O'NEILL

Title: Only Ever Yours
Author: Louise O'Neill
Publisher: Quercus
Genre: YA, Dystopian, Science Fiction
Release Date: 3rd July 2014

BLURB from Goodreads
In a world in which baby girls are no longer born naturally, women are bred in schools, trained in the arts of pleasing men until they are ready for the outside world. At graduation, the most highly rated girls become “companions”, permitted to live with their husbands and breed sons until they are no longer useful.

For the girls left behind, the future – as a concubine or a teacher – is grim.

Best friends Freida and Isabel are sure they’ll be chosen as companions – they are among the most highly rated girls in their year.

But as the intensity of final year takes hold, Isabel does the unthinkable and starts to put on weight. ..
And then, into this sealed female environment, the boys arrive, eager to choose a bride.

Freida must fight for her future – even if it means betraying the only friend, the only love, she has ever known. . . 


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INITIAL THOUGHTS
I have had this book on my “To Read” list for a while and have finally gotten around to reading it. I’m hoping that this is going to be a great dystopian. I am quite fascinated in how people view future females, and how perhaps present day worries may manifest within this female centered dystopian book. 

MY REVIEW
I downloaded an e-galley of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. I've seen three different covers for this book, but have chosen to feature the one I like the most. Though I think all three covers I have seen for this book fit it so well. There is what I would describe as a "barbie" doll on the cover to represent the "perfection" women should strive for as dictated by society. The beautiful cascading blonde wavy hair, teamed with the beautiful blue eyes with long lush eyelashes and the perfect red bow lips. 
There is a byline on the cover which fits before and after the title. "Choose A Girl . . . Only Ever Yours. . . To Own Forever" This byline really does fit the book and give you a hint at the society and the way females are a commodity. So would the cover alone make me pick this book up in a book store? Yes, it would, the cover images would attract my eye and then the byline would make me want to learn more about the book.
The world has changed beyond recognition, the Noah Project thought up by the America's but financed by the Chindia's has been undertaken. Anything thought unworthy or un-needed was abandoned, animal's thought to be of no use, organised religion is left behind. Female babies were thought to steal their mothers beauty so are no longer born. The result of this is soon there were no child bearing age women. Female babies are created and designed by men. The engineers have produced an improved female, that they refer to as eve's. The eve's live in a school that is protected from the wastelands by a large dome. The eve's "outside" is under the dome and it's all artificial grass, tree's, and flowers. Even the birds in the trees are artificially re-created out of fabric. All this gives an illusion of normality. The chastitie's run the school, they have shaved heads and wear voluminous intimidating yet shapeless black cloaks and show very little emotion even though they are the nearest thing to a mother the eve's have. The chastitie's teach the eve's to make the best of themselves. They chastitie's instill in the eve's that fat woman and old women are ugly! They are also taught Social Graces lessons, initially all eve's are taught the same then later after the "ceremony" when the eve's are separated into the three thing's they can become when they leave the school. The most coveted position is that of companion, they are the "best" eve's who will go on to have babies for the man they are assigned to. Once they are announced as companion's they are taught little mama classes. Then there's the concubine's who are visited by many men, surprisingly some of the eve's would rather be concubine's than companions. They are taught more about sex and how to please a man. Finally the third option is to stay within the school and become a chastity themselves. Becoming a chastity is unusual and an eve who really wishes to become a chastity is an ever more rare occurrence. Another class that features regularly and is often used to tire the girls out is "organised recreation". The eve's have this class every day at the end of their day. It's a way to make sure the girls are too tired to get up to mischief. This "class" is used to combat "female hysteria" so any eve thought to be overly emotional is sent to do extra organised recreation. I'd say it's a way to keep the eve's subdued and under control. For organised recreation the girls enter one of the glass boxes at either side of the chastities desk, they are handed their meds then transported down a shaft into the large basement area. The eve's stand into their individual glass coffin like boxes. Each girl has her own box personal to her.
So this book is quite futuristic in that the eve's live in their own little pods within a dormitory. They are woken up, they step into a cupboard type machine which cleans their bodies, does their hair in the style they have chosen and produces the necessary clothes for "the look" they are going for.  Each eve has their photograph taken and then go onto class where the chastity in charge of the class will reveal their rankings. Obviously all the eve's want to be #1! or if they cannot be #1 they want to be in the top ten that are unofficially supposed to be guaranteed a place as a companion. Then if not in the top ten they wish to be friends with the girls that are high ranking. Everything about the eve's is monitored from their looks, their clothes taste and of course the most important thing being monitored is their weight. All eve's eat in the Nutritional Centre, where the food is set under tureens with sign's above as to the calorie content. There is also the "fat girl buffet". There is also the vomitarium! yes, I admit to being taken aback with this addition to the story which tells us that this dystopic society finds it totally acceptable for the eve's to eat as much as they can cram in, then take medication that makes them run to the toilet or the vomitarium to then "get rid" of the food. This futuristic society seems to applaud weight loss by any means necessary.  So what happens if you are found to be over your target weight? Well you can be put on probation, and sent to the "chamber"where it is very hot and humid and they workout with weights. Also any overweight eve can be made to listen to a soundtrack which is meant to shame them into losing the weight. The soundtrack is filled with mantra's such as "Fat girls must be made obsolete" For example when isabel is on probation she is sent to the chamber to lift weights, listen to the soundtrack, her medication of kcal blockers is increased even though the larger dosage is considered very dangerous. isabel is isolated in this way until she becomes her ideal weight again. Having said that isabel seem's to be receiving special treatment in comparison to any other eve who is over their target weight. We learn more about how isabel is treat slightly differently and why later in the book. The eve's are actively encouraged to find faults in each other, ie skin blemishes, slight weight gains, last weeks "in" hair-do. The chastitie's openly promote and egg on the bitchy snideness within the school. It is like the "mean girls" at school times a hundred fold. The book is done in a kind of diary style with the main character of frieda counting down the months until the ceremony. Even the female names in this book are not given a capital letter to further express the perceived worthlessness. Again and again the eve's are reminded of their worth, that it depends on the inheritants choosing them at the ceremony, if they wish to be companions. chastity-ruth reminds the eve's that thinking too much robs them of their beauty. So no man wants a companion who thinks too much. I'd say from my interpretation and reading of the book that the chastities are like matrons, or wardens. They are also the nearest thing to a "mother figure" the eve's will ever have. The eve's look to the man who is "in charge" as their father, even calling him Father. The eve's are taught to hang on his every word and strive to be the best they can be as that is what the father preaches to them. chastity-anne thinks of the eve's bt the medication she dispensed to them. Even the eve's sleep is medicated with a wonder drug alled "sleep sound" even though it is known in large doses to cause muscle spasms, internal bleeding, corrosin of the vital organs as well as being highly addictive. We go through the addictive cycle of sleep sound with frieda. It is thought the more an eve sleeps the more beautiful she can become.
So to say a lot happens in this book is an understatement! and all of the above happens before the Inheritant's who get to choose their companion from the eve's presented to them. I found the constant pressure on the eve's to be beautiful intense but when you look at it some of these demands are what young girls today face. I hope any young adult reading this book is bright enough and confident enough to know that beauty is not everything. That bulimia aka vomitarium is not a good idea, and that a man beating a woman is not acceptable no matter who the man is.
I feel like I have only brushed the surface of this book, I could go on much more about the inheritant's and their thought's, meetings and interactions with the individual eve's. The main character frieda goes through a rough journey in the book, initially believing that her beauty and suitability to become an eve hinges on her weight and beauty. frieda has only one friend at the school, in fact they have quite a sisterly relationship with isabel, the then #1. frieda's place in the rankings fluctuates quite a lot throughout the book. frieda become reliant on isabel, as being friends with the #1 means you too are looked up to by the other eve's. Suddenly one day, it all changes, isabel is no longer #1, so frieda is no longer one of the "popular" girls. Sadly frieda desperately tries to become a friend to the new #1, and abandons her friend in need isabel in favour of competing to be part of the "in crowd". I could go on and on about this book it brushes so many social issues relevant to current issues today such as, bullying, peer pressure, bulimia, anorexia, addiction, domestic abuse, and suicide. I would say the book could be labelled as disturbing, but sadly in our ever changing world all the social issues covered within the book really are quite relatable.
So enough waffling I need to stop now before I reveal spoilers!
Did I enjoy the book? I enjoyed it immensely, and found it a rather thought provoking read. I was both intrigued and ??? by how Louise O'Neill took today's social issue's and transferred them into a pleasurable futuristic read. It was fascinating to see how the eve's perceived their value in terms of weight and visual beauty and how quickly they would secretly and when prompted publicly criticize each other to escape the wrath of whichever chastity was in charge of their class at the time.
Would I recommend the book? Personally I think it would make a great book for young adult girls to read and then discuss the social issues it shines a light on.
Would I want to read a book #2 in this series? I wasn't so keen on the ending for my two favourite characters frieda and isabel but I don't think there will be a book two. If there was a second book in this series I would be adding right to my to read list. Perhaps a spin off book or novella, following the lives of one of the inheritants and his chosen companion would be an interesting one. I would be curious to see if the eve's chosen as companions were happy in the position they had strived so hard for. It really would be fascinating to see if all the eve's were content with the situation they found themselves placed into at the ceremony. Learning more about the chastity training would be something I'd like to read too.
Would I read other titles by this author? I would definitely pay closer attention to anything written by this author.   

 FINAL THOUGHTS
My first thoughts and reaction upon finishing this book were "Oh wow I didn't see that ending. The ending is a rather twisted sad ending but I guess it's the only way things could have finished.  If you want a futuristic, involved, engrossing and addictive read that features genuine social issues and concerns then this is one you should read. It's a brilliantly thought provoking book. I'd truly love to Interview this author about this unusual yet in my opinion highly relevant dystopic society.

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Tuesday, 25 August 2015

REVIEW - TURN OF THE MOON - ROYAL SHIFTERS BY L.P. DOVER

Title: Turn Of The Moon
Series: Royal Shifters
Author: L.P. Dover
Genre: Paranormal, Shifter, Romance
Release Date: 24th August 2015

BLURB from Goodreads
One girl. Two wolves. Promised to one. Destined for the other. 

To escape the cruel, overbearing, Kade, the Yukon Pack alpha she’s been promised to, Bailey Whitehill flees her home in search of a new life, one of freedom where she can make her own choices. However, Kade will stop at nothing to make her his and begins the hunt. 

As Bailey starts her new life, everything she’s known to be true, is not. Time is of the essence and choices have to be made or consequences suffered. Not only does Bailey fear Kade, but another danger lurks deep in the recesses of the forest. Unbeknownst to her, that danger is what she’s been searching for all along. At the turn of the moon, her fate hangs in the balance . . . and it’s up to her to make the right choice.


PURCHASE LINKS

OTHER TITLES BY L.P. DOVER
(Links to Goodreads)

ROYAL SHIFTER'S SERIES

SECOND CHANCES SERIES

FOREVER FAE

GLOVES OFF

ARMED AND DANGEROUS

OTHER TITLES


ABOUT THE AUTHOR
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author, L.P. Dover, is a southern belle residing in North Carolina along with her husband and two beautiful girls. Before she even began her literary journey she worked in Periodontics enjoying the wonderment of dental surgeries. 

Not only does she love to write, but she loves to play tennis, go on mountain hikes, white water rafting, and you can’t forget the passion for singing. Her two number one fans expect a concert each and every night before bedtime and those songs usually consist of Christmas carols. 

Aside from being a wife and mother, L.P. Dover has written over nine novels including her Forever Fae series, the Second Chances series, and her standalone novel, Love, Lies, and Deception. Her favorite genre to read is romantic suspense and she also loves writing it. However, if she had to choose a setting to live in it would have to be with her faeries in the Land of the Fae. 

L.P. Dover is represented by Marisa Corvisiero of Corvisiero Literary Agency.

AUTHOR LINKS

MY REVIEW
Title: Turn Of The Moon
Series: Royal Shifters
Author: L.P. Dover
Genre: Paranormal, Shifter, Romance
Release Date: 24th August 2015

 BLURB from Goodreads
One girl. Two wolves. Promised to one. Destined for the other. 

To escape the cruel, overbearing, Kade, the Yukon Pack alpha she’s been promised to, Bailey Whitehill flees her home in search of a new life, one of freedom where she can make her own choices. However, Kade will stop at nothing to make her his and begins the hunt. 

As Bailey starts her new life, everything she’s known to be true, is not. Time is of the essence and choices have to be made or consequences suffered. Not only does Bailey fear Kade, but another danger lurks deep in the recesses of the forest. Unbeknownst to her, that danger is what she’s been searching for all along. At the turn of the moon, her fate hangs in the balance . . . and it’s up to her to make the right choice.

 Goodreads Link
PURCHASE LINKS

INITIAL THOUGHTS
To be honest after reading one or two shifter books I was looking for another that I thought would be really good. I went on Netgalley and saw this one, requested it and my request was accepted fairly quickly. as I was struggling with a book I was already reading I decided to start this one. I think my mum has read at least one L.P. Dover book and she enjoyed what she had read and as this one is paranormal/shifters I decided to give it a go.

REVIEW
As I mentioned above I received an e-arc of this title free form Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. The central feature of the cover the kissing couple under the moon, who I would say are Bailey and Ryker. The Moon is significant not only because it is on the cover and title but the way in which it's importance is an element revealed in the book. The book title and the authors name are done in a simplistic font that I think really suits the book cover as well as book content.
Would the cover make me pick this book up in a bookstore? That's a difficult question to answer totally honestly as the authors name alone would make me want to know more about the book, but yes I think the cover would be appealing enough to me to push me to pick up the book to learn more about it's contents.
The central characters in this book are Bailey, Sebastian, Kade, and Ryker. The first line of the blurb is One girl (Bailey), Two Wolves. Promised to one (Kade). Destined for the other (Ryker). In fact I think the first line of the blurb would make a perfect byline to appear on the front cover! 
So Bailey is a rare female werewolf and her parents Darius and Annika Whitehall have promised her to Kade, Alpha of the Yukon Pack, even though Kade is known for being cruel and heartless. Bailey understands that the continuation of a wolf pack bloodline is important and something she can wholeheartedly agree with but to be almost "sold off" like an object, and a future breeding machine is something she cannot come to terms with at all.
Bailey is forced to go meet Kade, who is being rather arrogant by turning up at the meeting in his wolf form, exaggeratedly sniffing her, rubbing his scent on her, even going so far as to biting her and leaving his mark on her! Bailey has to make it look like she has accepted her fate, and plays along making Kade believe she is quite literally surrendering herself to him,  and that she is prepared to spend the rest of her life with Kade. As once they have mated the bond/binding cannot be undone. Once alone with him she allows him to touch her though she finds his touch revolting, then once he actually thinks she is about to give herself to him attacks Kade, leaving him severely injured, possibly dead, and runs off, feeling she would rather leave her family and go it alone as a lone wolf than be with the sadistic Kade. Bailey just runs blindly in the direction her instinct seems to be taking her in. Bailey remains alone and in her wolf form until she finds a beautiful lake and decides to shift back to her human form and get rid of any remaining scent of Kade on her. It's whilst she is in the water that she realises she is no longer alone, there's a large arctic wolf watching her. An unmated arctic wolf she doesn't recognise but that at the same time seems kind of familiar too. Bailey instinctively changes to her wolf form and runs! There is only the briefest hesitation from the male wolf but then he chases after her. The male wolf soon catches her pinning her to the ground, as she looks into his bright green eyes she hears a pack approaching and then suddenly everything goes black. . . . When Bailey wakes she hears voices discussing her. Bailey eavesdrops and learns that she is the green eyed wolf's mate and that he bit her to trigger the visions that would tell her they are true mates and reveal who she truly is.
Well I could really go on and on forever and more about this book I loved it! To say this is L.P. Dover's first paranormal book, it's amazing and definitely want to read more of this series. My mum has read at least one of L.P. Dover's Second Chances novels and really enjoyed that so that's why as soon as I heard about Turn Of The Moon I wanted to read it!
The plot of the book is quite complex, we the reader, find out who Bailey truly is as she does within the visions that Ryker, the green eyed wolf has triggered by biting her.
Once Bailey is up and about she meets Ryker and his pack, the only pack she has ever known that has different breeds mixed together in one pack. Sebastian follows her and it's soon explained he is not exactly who Bailey has thought he was. Though multiple Alpha's do not usually exist in one pack, Ryker welcomes Sebastian as he loves and wishes to please Bailey so much. So I suppose you'd think great the book must be straight forward from here, that Bailey just has to "mate" with Ryker . . .but. . .of course things do not go so simply. There is the Yukon Pack on the "war path" so they have to be dealt with as well as the whole problem of Bailey's missing memories. Ryker wants his and Bailey's relationship to develop slowly and naturally. Ryker is the polar opposite of Kade, where Kade is violent, sadistic, arrogant and impatient to have Bailey as his possession. Ryker is gentle, patient, willing to discuss points of view with Bailey as his equal not a submissive partner.
I admit I made loads of notes as I read this book, and feel a little sad that after re-reading them the majority I decided not to use as I feel it could spoil your enjoyment of reading the book and having everything unfold to you as they did to me as I was reading.
I've looked back at my status updates on Goodreads, and my first one was at just 36% I was saying "Quite complex plot and family history for Bailey, certainly keeping me hooked!" At 60% I was still talking about the complexities of the plot "wow pack politics, packs uniting for the common good." I loved the way Ryker was always watching out for not only his pack members but is part of rescuing a nearby pack Alpha's sister when she is kidnapped. When Ryker needs help even though he does not ask for it, surrounding packs including their Alpha's are prepared to join with him in his fight against the Yukon Pack even though it may involve lives being lost. 
There's also plenty of kick butt female characters in this book, Bailey, Kami and Teyla too. I'm expecting the character of Faith to also be quite strong although we don't really fully meet her in this book. My final Goodreads status update was ""Oh no Ryker!" and I'm sure you will know instantly at what point I was saying that when you get to it in the book. This book does take you on a journey alongside Bailey. Though the book is told from dual point of view, that of Bailey and also Ryker. My first initial reaction upon finishing was "I have discovered another fantastic shifter series, when can I read more?" and that is how I feel, if there were more books available in this series now to read.
The only thing I think I should point out is that this is an adult, 18+ content. So I'd say it was a little steamy in places, and quite descriptive too. Having said that the "steaminess" and "descriptive steamy" parts were well within the context of the book. If those "steamy" parts were removed this could also have been within the New Adult genre.
So did I enjoy the book? I totally loved it. I'm looking forward to reading other readers/bloggers review of the book and discussing it too.
Would I recommend the book? Yes! It's an 18+ kind of read though.
Would I want to read another book in this series? If there had been another book available in this series I would have wanted to read it straightaway! The rest of the series is right on my Must Read List already! When can I have more???
Would I want to read other titles by L.P. Dover? I think I may give her Second Chances series a go, though I'm not so sure when as my To Read List is super long.

 FINAL THOUGHTS
Thoroughly enjoyed this book and am pleased to have discovered another brilliant shifter series to read. It is a book that I would go back to and re-read too. Which I know I do not do a lot as I have so many other books to read, but Turn Of The Moon is one I'd like to have on my keeper bookshelf. I think fans of Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld Series, and J.A. Belfield's Holloway Pack Series would love this series too.

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