Friday, December 26, 2014

Landslide Cover and Playlist Reveal

Today I have the pleasure of helping out one of my favorite author, Jenn Cooksey, with her cover reveal, and because she is so amazing and unique her playlist. Landslide features a lot of music song titles as chapter titles and all the participants in the reveal have the opportunity to reveal one song. To get the full playlist you have to visit all the wonderful people participating in the cover reveal. 
The full list is on Jenn's blog and she is also hosting a giveaway for you to enter. 

Cover Reveal
Landslide by Jenn Cooksey
Expected Publication: 2015
Genres: New Adult, Romance
For Erica and Cole, the bond of friendship was forged in childhood.
Now, torn and broken by grief, that bond will become paramount as two friends look to one another for comfort, strength, and hope in the aftermath of loss. On a journey taken both together and alone, Erica and Cole search for healing and life born anew. Although when mistakes, secrets and betrayal are revealed, the two must each learn to accept that even saints and some angels are human and people aren’t always who they appear to be.
But in the age old struggle to forget and forgive, realization dawns. And with it, so does the understanding that sometimes, the sturdiest foundation for the future lies buried in the dust of the past. Because, for some people…
…love is friendship caught on fire. 

 About the Author


Jenn Cooksey is a Southern California girl born and bred, however she's no longer a resident of heaven on earth, but instead she currently resides in the 7th Ring of Hell with her husband, their three daughters, and a goodly number of pets. Aside from her husband, one cat, and three out of five fish, everyone living under the Cooksey's roof is female. She's sure her husband will not only be awarded sainthood when he kicks the bucket, but that Jesus will welcome him into heaven with a beer and a congratulatory high-five. Jenn is also of the belief that Bacon should be capitalized and that just being yourself is the best way to go. That is, unless you can be Batman. Always be Batman.
      
My Playlist Selection: 

Let me know in the comments
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Friday, December 19, 2014

Lady MacBeth Blog Tour: Review and Giveawy

Welcome to Unabridged Bookshelf's stop on the Lady MacBeth Blog Tour!  Make sure to check out everything going on during this tour by clicking the banner above. 

About the Book
Title: Lady MacBeth: Daughter of the Ravens
Author: Melanie Karsak
Series:The Saga of Lady MacBeth
Publication Date: December 3, 2014
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
Purchase: Amazon 
Something wicked this way comes . . .
Gruoch is born to rule, but long before she becomes Macbeth’s queen, ancient forces claim her soul.
Marked from birth by the old gods, Gruoch is initiated into the ancient religion of her ancestors and begins learning the mysteries of the Goddess Cerridwen. But not everything is as it seems. Soon the Battle Goddess Morrigu imposes her will, and Gruoch finds herself at the mercy of the Wyrd Sisters.
With King Malcolm plotting, the Wyrd Sisters schooling her in arcane craft, and haunted by dreams of a raven-haired man she’s never met, Gruoch feels her fate is not her own. That is, until she meets a druid named Banquo. Gruoch’s heart is swept away when Banquo awakens something in her more powerful than duty, magic, or destiny: love.
This retelling of Shakespeare’s classic work leads readers through an unforgettable saga of one woman struggling to escape her fate without blood on her hands.
Begin the Lady Mabeth Saga with Lady Macbeth: Daughter of Ravens.

About the Author
Melanie Karsak is the author of the Amazon best-selling steampunk series The Airship Racing
Chronicles (Chasing the Star Garden and Chasing the  Green Fairy) and the award-wining horror/dark fantasy Harvesting Series. She grew up in rural northwestern Pennsylvania and earned a Master’s degree in English from Gannon University. A steampunk connoisseur, white elephant collector, and zombie whisperer, the author currently lives in Florida with her husband and two children. She is an Instructor of English at Eastern Florida State College.

   

My Review of Lady MacBeth
*Notice: This is an adult story meant for readers 18 and over*

Witchcraft, vengeance, and love that is my type of Fantasy story, and Lady MacBeth covers all the bases. I love the beauty of the magic featured in Lady MacBeth, and this first installment is actually quite innocent compared to the original tragedy written by Shakespeare. Even though I have never read MacBeth, I still know the general story, and Lady MacBeth is much like a prequel to Shakespeare version but with unique elements crafted by the author, Melanie Karsak. In the original play, Lady MacBeth is very unlikeable character, but in Lady Macbeth: Daughter of the Ravens, I could not help but adore her and root for her as her story begins.

I am curious to see how Melanie Karsak adds to the story with the next installment in the Daughter of the Ravens series. Is she going to stray from the original story, or take the original and give it a spin in her own way. Corbie, the future Lady MacBeth, is just discovering herself and her magical ancestry. I love watching her go from scared teenager to a woman who except her power. I also love seeing her discover her past lives and those that she has loved in past lives, and rekindle her love for Banquo.

I became a fan of Melanie Karsak’s after her zombie novel, The Harvesting, which I loved immensely. I knew I had to try her new take on MacBeth, even if I had not read the play before, due to her talent for sucking readers in with her stories. Lady MacBeth is no exception, I found myself sucked in, and unable to put the story down no matter what interruptions tried to steal my attention. This is not always the case when I read, but the way Melanie Karsak writes this story, I just had to finish it and find out what happens to Corbie.

I cannot wait to see what happens in the next installment of The Saga of Lady Macbeth, because the almost cliffhanger way the story is left. I have to know what is in store for Corbie, and I know the next book is one that I am going to by hanging on a thread as I read. 


**Unabridged Bookshelf received this book, in exchange for an honest review**


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Friday, December 12, 2014

Wicked Release Week Blitz

Welcome to Wicked Release Week Book Blitz!  Today I have a couple teasers and excerpt from Wicked for you to enjoy!

About the Book
Title: Wicked
Author: Jennifer Armentrout
Series: A Wicked Saga #1
Publication Date: December 8, 2014
Genres: New Adult, Fantasy
Things are about to get Wicked in New Orleans.
Twenty-two year old Ivy Morgan isn’t your average college student. She, and others like her, know humans aren’t the only thing trolling the French Quarter for fun… and for food. Her duty to the Order is her life. After all, four years ago, she lost everything at the hands of the creatures she’d sworn to hunt, tearing her world and her heart apart.
Ren Owens is the last person Ivy expected to enter her rigidly controlled life. He’s six feet and three inches of temptation and swoon-inducing charm. With forest-green eyes and a smile that’s surely left a stream of broken hearts in its wake, he has an uncanny, almost unnatural ability to make her yearn for everything he has to offer. But letting him in is as dangerous as hunting the cold-blooded killers stalking the streets. Losing the boy she loved once before had nearly destroyed her, but the sparking tension that grows between them becomes impossible for Ivy to deny. Deep down, she wants… she needs more than what her duty demands of her, what her past has shaped for her.
But as Ivy grows closer to Ren, she realizes she’s not the only one carrying secrets that could shatter the frail bond between them. There’s something he’s not telling her, and one thing is for certain. She’s no longer sure what is more dangerous to her—the ancient beings threatening to take over the town or the man demanding to lay claim to her heart and her soul.

About the Author
 # 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West
Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.
Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV.
She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.
   

EXCERPT FROM WICKED
All the words in the world vanished the moment I got an eyeful of Ren.

Holy hotness with an extra side of sexy, when Ren cleaned up, he took his handsomeness into a totally different stratosphere.

The waves and curls of his hair were currently tamed, styled back from his face, showing off the angle of his cheekbones and the fullness of his lips. He was wearing a white dress shirt that showed off the hard lines of his broad shoulders and flashed a glimpse of tawny skin at his neck. I noticed then, somehow never really seeing it before, a leather cord hanging from his neck and disappearing under his shirt. I was sure that was what carried the clover, but as my gaze traveled over him, I quickly forgot about it. The edges of the tattoo poked out of the collar of his shirt, and his sleeves were rolled up to the elbow, exposing powerful forearms. The dark trousers completed the outfit. It was effortless class.

When I dragged my gaze back to his, I realized I hadn’t been the only one doing the scrutinizing. He was staring at me in his intense, consuming way, and I stepped back from the door, suddenly feeling very . . . vulnerable. As if I was exposed in front of him.

Heat crept into my cheeks as I plastered my arms to my sides. “Sorry I . . . took so long. I was . . .” I trailed off as he continued to stare at me. “What?”

Ren stepped into the house, catching the door and closing it behind him. His presence filled the living room, and I could barely drag in enough air. “This is wrong,” he said, voice thick.

Surprised by the statement, I glanced down at myself. I knew I looked like a silly girl playing dress up. “It’s the only dress I could wear,” I said, feeling the weight of embarrassment settling on my shoulders.

He gave a little shake of his head as his bright green eyes met mine. “Oh, sweetness, you did wrong in all the right ways.”

I wasn’t following.

“How in the world am I going to pay attention when you look like that?” he chided softly, and my eyes widened. He moved forward, so close that I had to tip my chin up to meet his stare. He reached out, fingering the loose sleeve of my dress. “You are utterly distracting.”

“I am?”

A half smile appeared as his fingers skipped off the material and traced the line of my shoulder, sending a tight shiver down my spine. Then his finger wrapped around a curl, the back of his hand brushing the swell of my breast. He tugged it straight like he’d done before. “You are absolutely beautiful, Ivy.”

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Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Waiting on Wednesday: Dusk

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we cannot wait to get our hands on.

 I am waiting on:

Dusk (The Dire Wolves Chronicle, #2)
Title: Dusk
Author: Alyssa Rose Ivy
Series: The Dire Wolves Chronicles #2
Publication Date: January 12, 2014
Genre: New Adult, Paranormal, Romance, 
The Dire Wolves Chronicles continue...

After you have sacrificed your freedom what else is there to lose?

Mary Anne has given her word to Hunter that she’ll stay as his mate, but every second she spends with him takes her further away from Gage when he needs her the most.

Caught between love and duty, Mary Anne discovers that her troubles are just beginning, and that sometimes love comes at a great price.
Why am I waiting?
At this point if you have been to my blog, I really do not even have to say why I am waiting. If you are new here, first Welcome and second I should admit now that I am an Alyssa Rose Ivy fanatic. The Dire Wolves Chronicles is my new favorite series, and I have to see what happens to Gage, and Mary Anne. 

What are you waiting on?
Make sure to let me know in the comments

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Monday, December 8, 2014

Happy Release Day Breaking the Rules: Excerpt and Giveaway

Welcome to Breaking the Rules Book Blitz!  Today I have an Excerpt from Breaking the Rules and a Blitz giveaway for you!

About the Book
Title: Breaking the Rules
Author: Katie McGarry
Series: Pushing the Limits #1.5
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: December 8, 2014
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, 
A summer road trip changes everything in this unforgettable new tale from acclaimed author Katie McGarry.
For new high school graduate Echo Emerson, a summer road trip out west with her boyfriend means getting away and forgetting what makes her so . . . different. It means seeing cool sights while selling her art at galleries along the way. And most of all, it means almost three months alone with Noah Hutchins, the hot, smart, soul-battered guy who's never judged her. Echo and Noah share everything--except the one thing Echo's just not ready for.
But when the source of Echo's constant nightmares comes back into her life, she has to make some tough decisions about what she really wants--even as foster kid Noah's search for his last remaining relatives forces them both to confront some serious truths about life, love, and themselves.
Now, with one week left before college orientation, jobs and real life, Echo must decide if Noah's more than the bad-boy fling everyone warned her he'd be. And the last leg of an amazing road trip will turn . . . seriously epic.

About the Author
Katie McGarry was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as
the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.
Katie is the author of full length YA novels, PUSHING THE LIMITS, DARE YOU TO, CRASH INTO YOU, TAKE ME ON,  BREAKING THE RULES, and NOWHERE BUT HERE and the e-novellas, CROSSING THE LINE and RED AT NIGHT. Her debut YA novel, PUSHING THE LIMITS was a 2012 Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction, a RT Magazine's 2012 Reviewer's Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, a double Rita Finalist, and a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick. DARE YOU TO was also a Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction and won RT Magazine’s Reviewer’s Choice Best Book Award for Young Adult Contemporary fiction in 2013.
    


EXCERPT FROM BREAKING THE RULES

From Noah's POV
“Did you fall into some paint, Echo?” Isaiah asks, changing the subject.

Echo’s shoulder slumps as she pivots toward the mirror. She groans as she touches her 

cheek and forehead that are more red and pink than skin. “Dang it. Why am I such a mess?”

“I think it’s sexy as hell,” I say.

“I think I’m going to barf,” Beth mocks my tone.

Death radiates from the look I send her way. Enough that it should melt her. “Ever sleep 

Beth focuses on the screen while raising her middle finger in my direction.

“Screw it.” Echo turns away from the mirror. “I need a shower.”

I smile, Echo blushes, then I laugh. Damn me for inviting Isaiah and Beth to share our 

“Anyhow.” An excited glint strikes Echo’s eyes. “Are you ready? I hope you like it. It’s 

sort of…for you. But it’s not done, okay? I mean, something like this would actually take a while 

to perfect, so I guess I’m saying—”

“It’s all good.”

“Okay.” Her fingers drum nervously over the top of the canvas before she repeats, 

“I’m assuming that’s not the constellation Aires?”

“No. I’ll have to start on that tomorrow.” With a deep inhale, Echo pulls out a chair from 

the table and rests the painting on the arms and leans it against the back so it will stay upright.

Air rushes out of my body, and I sink onto our bed. It’s the same damned shock as when 

she drew my parents this past spring. There’s awe and joy and this ache that hits deep in my gut. 

I bend forward and rest my joint hands on my knees and stare at the sight in front of me.

Fuck me, my eyes burn. I shut them, attempting to get my shit together. It’s a painting. 

Only a painting. I reopen them, and it’s the same disorientation as a right hook to the head. It’s 

more than a painting, and that’s the reason my throat swells.

Last night meant as much to me as it did to her and she painted it, capturing it in a way 

unique to Echo. She’s right, it’s not done. It’s a skeleton compared to her other work, but I see 

enough to know what she desires, what she plans to design. Up close all those colors would look 

like chaos, but when viewed as a whole it creates this beautiful picture. In the end, that’s the best 

way to describe me and Echo, our relationship. Our love.

The bed dips as Echo eases onto it, settles behind me and props her chin on my shoulder. 

Her signature scent that reminds me of walking into a bakery becomes an invisible blanket 

surrounding me. “What do you think?”

“It’s us,” I whisper, and knots form in my stomach. Echo always finds a way to blow my 

mind. She tenses behind me and I continue, “It’s where we spent last night.”

“It is.” Echo relaxes, and her fingers curl around my biceps. “Do you like it?”

Struggling for composure, I place my hand over hers and pause. “It’s…”

I’m not Echo. I don’t have words for what happens inside me. If I did, I’d fail at 

describing this. I shift to rest my forehead against hers. “I don’t deserve you.”

“That’s my statement,” she says so only I can hear. “I wish we were alone again.”

I press my lips to hers, slide my hand through her hair and watch as the curls bounce back 

into place. “Me, too.”





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Thursday, December 4, 2014

Anomaly Blog Tour: Review and Giveaway


Welcome to Unabridged Bookshelf's stop on the Anomaly Blog Tour!  Make sure to check out everything going on during this tour by clicking the banner above. 

About the Book
Title: Anomaly
Author: Tonya Kuper
Series: Schrodinger's Consortium #1
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Publication Date: November 25, 2014
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Reality is only an illusion.
Except for those who can control it…
Worst. Birthday. Ever.
My first boyfriend dumped me – happy birthday, Josie!- my dad is who knows where, I have some weird virus that makes me want to hurl, and now my ex is licking another girl’s tonsils. Oh, and I’m officially the same age as my brother was when he died. Yeah, today is about as fun-filled as the swamps of Dagobah. But then weird things start happening…
Like I make something materialize just by thinking about it.
When hot badass Reid Wentworth shows up on a motorcycle, everything changes. Like, everything. Who I am. My family. What really happened to my brother. Existence. I am Oculi, and I have the ability to change reality with my thoughts. Now Reid, in all his hotness, is charged with guiding and protecting me as I begin learning how to bend reality. And he’s the only thing standing between me and the secret organization that wants me dead…

About the Author

Tonya Kuper's debut, ANOMALY, the first in the Schrodinger's Consortium young adult scifi
trilogy, releases November 2014 by Entangled Teen. She lives in Omaha, NE with her two rad boys and husband, is a music junkie, and a chocolate addict. Star Wars & Sherlock fan.
   

My Review of Anomaly
Anomaly is the book every nerd will fall in love with, and lets all admit everyone has a little nerd inside of them. Josie is just my type of girl, but add in that she is has the ability to create reality with just a thought makes her the type of heroine I can get behind. My favorite parts of the story usually included some reference to Star Wars, Star Trek, or other just as wonderful fandoms.  The heavy conspiracy theory driven plot also helps make this an action packed read. 

While I am always up for a nerd turned superhero story, Anomaly has much more to it that just superpowers. There is also a romantic element between Josie and her trainer, Reid. Reid is also hiding information from Josie, and watching the play out had me continuously turning the page. I have to say that yes Josie’s powers made her beyond cool in my eyes, but it was her down to earth nerd qualities that made me want to keep following her story. These references and qualities really made her seem like the girl next door, and a character I would totally have as a friend in my everyday life. 

Josie really knows how to handle herself even before her powers arrive on her 17th birthday. While I do not mind a weak, scared heroine discovering she is able to stand up and fight for something story, I love a story when the main character is already strong and can protect themselves without a second thought. I will also say that I tend to love alternative points of view, because I like having a complete 360 view of the story. While sometimes during the times they were together I was not sure they were completely necessary, I still liked knowing what Reid was thinking. 

Anomaly being the first book in the  Schrodinger's Consortium has me hooked, and I will defiantly be checking in to see what is going to happen in the next installment. This book is a read for science fiction fans, and anyone with an inner or outer nerd too. 

**Unabridged Bookshelf received this book, in exchange for an honest review**

Prize 1
Prize 2
Prize 3
Prize 4



Tour Organized by YA Bound Blog Tours

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