Review: HOLLOW CITY by Ransom Riggs

HOLLOW CITY

Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children

by Ransom Riggs

Publication Date: January 14, 2014

Published by Quirk Books

Pages: 394

Source: Publisher/Library (audiobook version)

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This sequel to the first novel, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, begins in 1940, immediately after the first book ended.

Having escaped Miss Peregrine’s island by the skin of their teeth, Jacob and his new friends must journey to London, the peculiar capital of the world. Along the way, they encounter new allies, a menagerie of peculiar animals, and other unexpected surprises.

Complete with dozens of newly discovered vintage photographs.

My Thoughts

When I finished Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, I was content with how it ended with the children riding off into the sunset. At the time, I don't think a second book to the series was announced,  but I wasn't desperate to know how the story continued. I could imagine how their story would continue without the need for a new book. So when Hollow City was released, I held off reading it. This was purely due to my personal reading preferences and nothing against the story or the writing, I just wasn't into it at the moment. It wasn't until book 3, Library of Souls, was announced that I found myself wanting to revisit the peculiars. 

As soon as I started reading Hollow City (well, listening to it), I was back in their world and I questioned why it took me so long to go back there. It's funny when that happens. I alternated listening to the story and reading it and that help to raise my enjoyment level. The audiobook brought more life to the story than what I was giving it while reading it. I find that I need that sometimes when a story is filled with many characters and Hollow City definitely is. 

Like the first book, I loved how the pictures were used in the storytelling. One of my favorite parts of reading the book is learning the story behind the image on the cover. The images are unusual and sometimes really creepy and most definitely enhance the story. I looked forward to coming across one of the images as I read. (While listening to the audiobook, I would grab my physical copy of the book so I could see the new peculiar or the setting described.)

The plot of Hollow City kept me engaged and when I wasn't reading it, I found myself eager to return to the story. The peculiars were put in many dangerous, life-threatening situations and found that their abilities were necessities and not just oddities. It helped them find their purpose. Many new peculiars were introduced with powers and a unigueness of their own. And there are a lot of unexpected turns to the story.

Hollow City is a fantastic contuation of the series. I feel silly that it took me so long to read this book, but I won't make the mistake of waiting to read Library of Souls. In fact, I've already started reading it. (Spoiler: AND I'm loving it!)

Disclaimer:  I received a finished copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.  I was not compensated in any way other than the book provided. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

MY SECRET TO TELL by Natalie D. Richards: Q&A, Excerpt, and Giveaway

This October Natalie D. Richards releases her latest YA thriller, MY SECRET TO TELL. To celebrate, Natalie is here for a quick Q&A and has brought an excerpt to share!

What books made you fall in love with reading and writing?

Oh, what a lovely question! So many books along the way led me to this incredible job. If we go early to later, I’d say Green Eggs and Ham, A Light in the Attic, Anne of Green Gables, The Awakening, The Stand, Phantoms, Lightning, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Poisonwood Bible, Harry Potter….is this list supposed to end? This list NEVER ends.

My Secret to Tell

by: Natalie D. Richards

Publcation date: October 6th, 2015
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Pages: 320

His smile is a crime.

Emerson May is “the good girl.” She’s the perfect daughter, the caring friend, the animal shelter volunteer. But when her best friend’s brother breaks into her room, his hands covered in blood, she doesn’t scream or call the cops. Because when Deacon smiles at her, Emmie doesn’t want to be good…

The whole town believes notorious troublemaker Deacon is guilty of assaulting his father. Only Emmie knows a secret that could set him free. But if she follows her heart, she could be trusting a killer…

You can’t always trust the boy next door.

After years as a professional paper-pusher, NATALIE D. RICHARDS decided to trade in reality for a life writing YA fiction. She lives in Ohio (Go Bucks!) with her husband, three children, and a ridiculously furry dog named Yeti. This is her second novel. Visit her on Twitter @natdrichards or at nataliedrichards.com.

***

An Excerpt:

“Emmie?”

My name lands somewhere between a hiccup and a sob, and my feet stall out on the sidewalk in front of my house. I adjust my grip on the phone, hoping I misheard her tone. This doesn’t sound like Chelsea. This voice is breathless.

Frightened.

“I’m here,” I say. “What’s up? You don’t sound right.”

“I’m not.” She takes a shuddery breath.

My shirt’s sticking to my back and cicadas are click-buzzing the end of another blistering day, but I go cold. Something’s wrong.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

“It’s my dad, Emmie,” she says. I can tell she’s crying.

I grab my chest. It’s too tight. Burning. “What happened?”

Her words all tumble out on top of one another, interrupted by shaky breaths. I try to pick out pieces that make sense. “He’s hurt—bleeding—we’re behind the ambulance and I can’t—he’s not—someone attacked him.”

I start climbing the porch steps, because she’ll need me. I’m her best friend, so I should be there. I need to change clothes and go. “You’re on the way to the hospital, right? They’ll help him there.”

Another sharp breath. “I don’t know if they can. He’s so bad. So bad.”

My heart clenches. “Where are you?”

“We’re almost there. Joel’s with me.”

“Okay, good. I’m coming,” I say, crossing my porch and hauling my front door open. “Let me just call Mom. I’ll borrow the car.”

Chelsea’s still crying when I storm down the hallway toward my bedroom.

“Emmie, I can’t find Deacon…”

“Your brother never answers his phone,” I say, pushing open my door. “I’ll run by the docks first and—”

“No. No, he was there. He was at the house.”

Chelsea makes a strangled sound, and I notice the liquid-thick heat in my bedroom. The kind of heat that tells me the air conditioner is broken. Or my window is open.

     My gaze drags to my fluttering white curtains, to the dark smudge on the windowsill.

     Chelsea’s voice goes low and raspy. “He ran, Emmie. God, he was there with Dad. He was in the house, but he ran.”

     I swivel with an invisible fist lodged in my throat. My bathroom door is open, a red-black smudge beneath the knob.

     My mouth goes dry, my pulse thumping slower than it should. Then I see the blood on the floor by my sink, and my heart tumbles end over end.

     “We’re here. I’ll call soon,” Chelsea says and hangs up.

     I see him, his back to my tub and his dark head bowed on one bent knee. Oh God.

     He’s covered in blood. It’s on his legs, his hands. Dripping onto my white tile floor. He looks up, and my heart goes strangely steady.

     I take a breath that tastes like purpose. “Deacon?”

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Cover Reveal: IGNITED by Liz Long

Synopsis

Lucy might’ve beaten Alex the Chameleon, but the cost of his defeat was too much to bear. After losing a beloved member, Sheffield Donovan temporarily disbands the show. Abandoned by the ringmaster and her friends, Lucy is left to pick up the pieces of their ruined circus – and defend it against those waiting for the opportunity to strike.

During one of these attempts, Lucy learns of Augustus Rivers, the leader of his so-called gifted mafia. When Lucy is offered a chance to infiltrate the Rivers’ household, she jumps at the opportunity to seek vengeance on the mastermind. Augustus instead surprises everyone by proposing that the powerful female Firestarter work for him. It’s everything the Donovan Circus isn’t, an offer Lucy finds more enticing than she ever expected.

With the Donovan Circus in shambles and the gifted world on the cusp of war, can Lucy Sullivan figure out who she’s meant to be? Or will her fire destroy everything they’ve built?

About the Author

Liz Long is a ridiculously proud graduate of Longwood University with a BA in English. Her inspiration comes from action and thriller genres and she spends entirely too much time watching superhero movies. Her fabulous day job as a social media editor includes writing for a publishing company in Roanoke, VA.

Her first book, Gifted, is the first book in the Donovan Circus series, where superpowers meets the circus. Burned is the second adventure. Her standalone book Witch Hearts, is a story about a serial killer hunting witches for their powers. Her newest book A Reaper Made is an NA Paranormal tale of a Reaper using magic to save her family from demons. All titles are available at Amazon on Kindle and paperback, Barnes & Noble for Nook, and iBooks.

Author Intro and Cover Reveal: A SHOT OF RECKLESS by Maddie Paige

Writing duo Maddie Paige bonded over books, shirtless boys and Step Up movies. One lives for her coffee while the other prefers hot chocolate. Both lovers of romance, they tag teamed a manuscript over late nights at Steak 'n Shake. They live in Atlanta, GA and A Shot of Reckless is their debut.

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A Shot of Reckless comes out OCTOBER 14! 

Below you can learn a little about it and enter to win an ebook!

WHAT'S IT ABOUT?

Art major, Roxy Thompson, is a ball of fun—but she's also careful to keep her walls intact when it comes to men. She likes relationships just like her coffee: light and sweet. After having her heart shattered once before, she’s determined not to ever feel that broken again. 

College senior, Lake Foster, is just tempting enough to make Roxy rethink her rules of engagement. Suddenly, high-dollar shots and a no-strings night out aren't enough anymore. But Lake isn't looking for long-term. His future is set, and in four months, he intends to graduate and leave Georgia—and everything in it—behind. Luckily, short-term fun is Roxy’s specialty, and Lake can’t resist what he promises will be a fleeting taste. 

Will Roxy and Lake really walk away when their time is up? They only have one shot to find out. 

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Blog Tour - INTO THE DANGEROUS WORLD by Julie Chibbaro, Guest Post and Giveaway

INTO THE DANDEROUS WORLD Blog Tour is in full swing and today I'm hosting author Julie Chibbaro. Julie collaborated with her husband JM Superville Sovak on this illustrated novel. Find out how they work together, then enter to win a Into the Dangerous World print, shirt, and swag.

INTO THE DANGEROUS WORLD

by Julie Chibbaro

Art by JM Superville Sovak

Publication Date: August 18, 2015

Published by Viking/Penguin

Pages: 352

Source: Publisher

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Synopsis

Ror lives to draw—to her, it’s like breathing; it’s how she understands life. Raised on a Staten Island commune, she’s never attended a day of school, and knows little of the outside world. When her paranoid father burns down the commune with himself inside, Ror, her mother, and sister end up in a homeless residence in Manhattan. There, she runs into trouble—and love—with Trey, the leader of Noise Ink, a graffiti crew. 

On the city’s streets, and in its museums and galleries, Ror finds herself pulled in different directions. Her father wanted her to make classic art. Noise Ink insists she stay within their lines. Her art teacher urges her to go to college. But what does she want? Ror’s soul-searching—expressed in remarkable drawings and sharp-edged prose, set in the gritty Manhattan of 1984—is cinematic in its scope, and its seamless blend of text and art makes Into the Dangerous World a groundbreaking event in young adult fiction.

CHECK OUT MY REVIEW

“How We Work Together” 

by Julie Chibbaro

When I told my friend Sandra that I was working on a novel with JM, my artist husband, her eyes opened wide. She said, “I could never work on something with Steve,” her partner. “We’d end up killing each other.” We nearly have, I wanted to tell her. Instead, I kept my mouth shut and smiled, letting her think the collaboration was seamless. That was the front he and I had agreed on.

Frankly, I had never successfully written a book without the help of many people, JM being my first reader, always. And I knew the same was true for him – he never spent too long in the studio without asking my opinion on something. Because no one creates in a vacuum. Always, we hurt each other, because who doesn’t want to believe their creation is perfect. Those harsh words, “It’s not there yet. I don’t understand what you’re doing,” were more easily ignored before we started working on Into the Dangerous World, our first really big project together.

This time, we had the book, and everyone who believed in us, our editor, our agent, on the line. Our fights were awful.

“That scene is NOT ridiculous! You don’t know what you’re talking about!” I would cry, when he dismissed the fight between Frankie and Trey, two boys in opposing crews. Frankie was physically larger than Trey, and I logically had him pounding the smaller guy.

“You’re not being true to your characters,” JM said, exasperated with my drama.

“Of course I am. I know my characters.” I had written out character studies, spent hours researching their backgrounds, matching pictures to what I imagined they looked like.

“Trey is quicker, both mentally and physically. He would whip around Frankie, and outsmart him. Frankie could never beat Trey.”

I pouted, but secretly, I knew he was right. And I knew he had found just the right reason, the one that made sense for the book. So when it came time for me to critique him, I withstood his evil eye. Then, I found just the right words to explain what I felt was wrong with his drawing, in relation to the book.

That, it turned out, was the key to us working well together. Being able to find what was true to the novel, and taking away the personal element resulted in us insulting each other personally less often. The more we could turn to the text, and our characters, the better our answers became.

Here are three rules we followed when working together:

If you’re going to make a statement, give proof in the text.

Be a whiny baby, but get over it.

Be willing to ask and answer questions relating to the story.

In other words: Keep the drama in the work, where it belongs.

All in all, it’s been a great experience working with my husband, and now that we know our boundaries, we just may do it again!



Julie Chibbaro and Jean-Marc Superville Sovak are the husband and wife duo behind Into the Dangerous World (Viking 2015).

Julie Chibbaro was born into a family of artists, and also married one. She grew up in NYC during the explosion of graffiti art. She has written two historical novels, Redemption, which won the American Book Award, and Deadly, which won the National Jewish Book Award. JM Superville Sovak is half-Trini, half-Czech, half-Canadian. His fourth half is spent making art, for which he earned his M.F.A. from Bard College in NY.

They both live in Beacon, NY.

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Blog Tour Review: INTO THE DANGEROUS WORLD by Julie Chibbaro

INTO THE DANGEROUS WORLD

by Julie Chibbaro

Art by JM Superville Sovak

Publication Date: August 18, 2015

Published by Viking/Penguin

Pages: 352

Source: Publisher

Add to Goodreads

Purchase Amazon / B&N / Indiebound

Synopsis

Ror lives to draw—to her, it’s like breathing; it’s how she understands life. Raised on a Staten Island commune, she’s never attended a day of school, and knows little of the outside world. When her paranoid father burns down the commune with himself inside, Ror, her mother, and sister end up in a homeless residence in Manhattan. There, she runs into trouble—and love—with Trey, the leader of Noise Ink, a graffiti crew.

On the city’s streets, and in its museums and galleries, Ror finds herself pulled in different directions. Her father wanted her to make classic art. Noise Ink insists she stay within their lines. Her art teacher urges her to go to college. But what does she want? Ror’s soul-searching—expressed in remarkable drawings and sharp-edged prose, set in the gritty Manhattan of 1984—is cinematic in its scope, and its seamless blend of text and art makes Into the Dangerous World a groundbreaking event in young adult fiction.

My Thoughts

Into the Dangerous World, set during the Reagan Era of the early 1980's, is a thoughtful story of a teenager coming into her own as she deals with the recent death of her father. The story is driven by Ror's need to create art, be expressive, have purpose, and find her place in the world that hasn't had a place for her until now.

The illustrations add depth to the story and helped express the confusion that Ror experienced from losing her father. She tried to make sense of his last words to her and she ultimately realized that she needed to make her own meaning. The vibrant graffiti was significant to the story and I would have loved to see some of the illustrations in color.

Ror is a new favorite character. She's courageous and daring and she speaks her mind - vocally (loved it when she gives Trey "real talk" or through her art. As confusing as her relationship was with her father, he also taught her to be independent, self-reliant, and imaginative. I enjoyed reading about her and knowing her thoughts and her fears. I would have liked more interactions with her sister. They were different in many ways, but there was a fierce level of protection and concern for each other.

Some Favorite Quotes:

"A wild cry of surprised joy strained at my throat. Doors flung open in my head -- I wanted to eat paint, let it zing out my fingers, get lost in the colors in this room.

Felt like I'd been waiting to breathe. Here was air." (pages 44-45) 

- When Ror attends public school for the first time and sees all that she has access to in her art class. It expands her ability to create, be expressive, and to be alive.

"I drew like people breathed.

I drew because if I didn't, I'd die.

I drew to follow the shape of the world, so I could understand how it worked and why I was here.

All right, fine, I drew because it made other kids like me --" (page 55) 

- An expansion of the previous quote, but also her art gave her the feeling of acceptance. She was different and it gave her an opportunity to be liked.

"I'm not scared to fight, Trey. Or dance. Or whatever. I just want to know what I'm fighting for. At least tell me that." (page 237)

- She needed a purpose if she was putting herself in danger. She needed to know the reason for all of the conflict and confrontation and if it was something that she could stand up for.

Into the Dangerous World is a fantastic story and I want to read more books like this one! And if this book ever becomes a full-color graphic novel, I would want to read that version of it too. I loved it!

Disclaimer:  I received a finished copy from Viking/Penguin as part of the blog tour hosted by Lady Readers Bookstuff in exchange for my honest review.  I was not compensated in any way other than book provided. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

Julie Chibbaro and Jean-Marc Superville Sovak are the husband and wife duo behind Into the Dangerous World (Viking 2015).

Julie Chibbaro was born into a family of artists, and also married one. She grew up in NYC during the explosion of graffiti art. She has written two historical novels, Redemption, which won the American Book Award, and Deadly, which won the National Jewish Book Award. JM Superville Sovak is half-Trini, half-Czech, half-Canadian. His fourth half is spent making art, for which he earned his M.F.A. from Bard College in NY.

They both live in Beacon, NY.

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