Showing posts with label e-books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label e-books. Show all posts

Friday, May 24, 2013

Blog Tour: True by Erin McCarthy - Guest Post


True
by Erin McCarthy
Publication date: May 7, 2013
Published by Penguin Group
Genre: New Adult

Synopsis:
When Rory Macintosh’s roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they’ll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job…unbeknownst to Rory.

Tyler knows he’s not good enough for Rory. She’s smart, doctor smart, while he’s barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can’t resist taking up her roommates on an opportunity to get to know her better. There’s something about her honesty that keeps him coming back when he knows he shouldn’t…

Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler’s broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost…

Erin McCarthy is a new-to-me author. True is the first book of her's that I'll have read. I love discovering a new-to-me author who has a vast collection of books already published. No waiting for the latest book. I've read several New Adult books and am such a fan. True is another one to fall in love with. 

Erin McCarthy, author of the New Adult novel True, talks about her writing rituals and fun facts that aren’t covered in her author bio.

Do you have any writing rituals?

I always listen to music when I write and I must have Diet Coke.  I usually write in my attic, which is my office, but I can write anywhere if it’s called for.  My only quirk probably is if I’m writing in public, I have to sit so the screen of my laptop is hidden from the other customers.  I turn it practically sideways on airplanes because I’ve caught the guy next to me reading my work as I wrote more than once and it annoys me.  It’s so out of context I can only imagine what they’re thinking.  Or maybe I’m just paranoid.

Any fun facts that readers wouldn’t know about you from reading your bio?

I rode a bike (as in bicycle) for the first time last summer and it was scarier to me than skydiving.  For real. It was downright traumatizing to try to balance myself.  Falling is easier.

I love to decorate my house and it was once described as yuppie goth.  Where Pottery Barn and creepy Victorian dolls collide.  One of my greatest juvenile pleasures is moving the scariest doll around the house on my friends and my kids so she’s just there all of a sudden, watching them.

Lying on the beach makes me happy, I’m taking college French classes, and I take bellydancing classes.  



Erin McCarthy is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 40 novels and novellas in the paranormal, contemporary romance, and young adult genres.  The author is a RITA award finalist and an American Library Association winner of the Reluctant Young Reader award. She lives with her family in Ohio.  

Visit Erin online:




Join the #TRUE conversation on Twitter with @authorerinn, @InterMixBooks, and @BerkleyRomance!

Thanks Erin for sharing!!

Friday, January 4, 2013

Review: Forever My Girl by Heidi McLaughlin






Forever My Girl
by Heidi McLaughlin
Published by Bandit Publishing
Publication Date: December 26, 2012
Pages: 220
Sources: Purchased









(from Goodreads)

I was never supposed to be a rock star. I had my life all planned out for me. Play football in college. Go to the NFL. Marry my high school sweetheart and live happily ever after.

I broke both our hearts that day when I told her I was leaving. I was young. I made the right decision for me, but the wrong decision for us. I’ve poured my soul into my music, but I’ve never forgotten her. Her smell, her smile.

And now I’m going back.

After ten years.

I hope I can explain that after all this time.

I still want her to be my forever girl.


My Thoughts

I love when I start reading a new book and getting swept up in the story from the very beginning. That is exactly what happened while reading Forever My Girl. The alternating point of views let me know what Liam and Josie were thinking and feeling which allowed for an immediate connection to the characters. They both were experiencing a significant loss - the death of a friend - and it was as though I was experiencing their loss. I was that caught up and I admit there were even a few tears shed.

Some parts of the story are told in flashbacks and these were some of my favorite parts of the book.  In these moments, it was apparent just how much Josie and Liam meant to each other and loved each other. Their love was a young love, but real and overwhelming.

Forever My Girl had me on an emotional roller coaster. There was a heaviness to it, but there were many smiles, some laughs, heart-warming moments, and lot of anticipation.  It is a really sexy story and the idea of what might be contributes to that. The story builds and builds and I hoped that Liam and Josie would end up together, but there for a while I could see the possibility that I might not happen. A lot of time had passed, Josie suffered a lot of pain when Liam left, and she had a lot of healing to do and feared that her heart would be shattered all over again. 

While I loved the story and cared about Liam and Josie and their happiness, there were some things that I do take issue with. The timeline of when Liam left college, changed his fate, and became a rock star. It was like he was an overnight success and he really didn't have to make his way to the top. I realize that his journey to fame wasn't the point of this story, but it felt too easy and not very realistic.

The small town girl in me really loved the small town setting. I could relate to how all of the friends and town's people where wrapped up in each other's lives. I'm thrilled that this will be a series and getting to see into the lives of the other people of Beaumont. Even though Forever My Girl just came out, I am already anticipating reading the next book. Until then, I will push it on my friends.


Monday, December 31, 2012

Books of the Month(5): Part 2

Books of the Month is where I share books I got In My Mailbox, read, and reviewed during the entire month. This month I've added a new category: Shared from My Shelves. This includes books that I've loaned to my friends and other readers. Variations of these types of posts exist on many blogs so I am not claiming credit for this idea.

This was a huge month of books for me. I had to break this up into 2 posts. You can see Part 1 here, if you missed it.


Books of December









Purchased 
(all e-books)

Gifted
from Alicia

For Review/Blog Tour/Promotion

 ********************
Read
(links to Amazon) 
Annabel by Lauren Oliver 
 Radiant by Cynthia Hand 
 Chasing Sunset by Sami Lee 
  Wrong Bed, Right Guy by Katee Robert 

 ********************
Shared from My Shelves
(books borrowed by friends)

If I Stay by Gayle Forman
Where She Went by Gayle Forman
I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder
Dead to You by Lisa McMann
Easy by Tammara Webber

********************


Reviewed
(links to reviews) 
 The Believing Game by Eireann Corrigan

2012 Reads: Complete List, Goals, & Challenges

Last January I joined some challenges and set some personal reading goals. Throughout the year, I tracked my reading progress and listed below are my reading goals and accomplishments for 2012. Even though I didn't accomplish all that I set out to do, I have to say that I didn't do half bad.  

On January 1, 2013, I will have a whole new set of goals. I'm not officially joining any challenges, but I am setting several personal challenges. If you are interested, you can check back to see what they are on my January 2, 2013 post. 

Read 85 books for the Goodreads Challenge: Read 105 (all titles listed below)

Read at least 10 e-books: read 25!!

Read 20 books from my bookshelves that I purchased prior to 2012 (doesn't include e-books): this is embarrassing, but I only read 13 books "from my shelves"

Read at least 10 library books: only read 3

Finally read Pride and Prejudice: I started Pride and Prejudice. I am about 1/3 of the way through and with each slow-turning page, I realize, with just a few hours left, it's not going to happen this year. So I'm pretty sure FINISH Pride and Prejudice will be on my 2013 goals list.



Challenges:
(Links to Challenge Hosts)

Debut Author Challenge Goal: 12; Read: 7

Sophomore Author Challenge  Goal: 10; Read: 10

Completely Contemporary Challenge Goal: 10; Read: 10+

 YA Verse Books Challenge Goal: 5; Read: 5+ 


Complete 2012 Book List
(links to Amazon)

The date listed is when I finished the book.
*Library Book
**Borrowed from a friend
***reread
+e-book

January
2: Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Hubbard
5: Delirium by Lauren Oliver+
8:Major Crush by Jennifer Echols +
10: Girl Meets Boy by Kelly Milner Halls
11: The Wolf by Steven Herrick*
14: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith
15: Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann
22: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand+
24:The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour
29:Love and Leftovers by Sarah Tregay


February
2:The Knife and the Butterfly by Ashley Hope Perez
4: 2 Days (Gravel Road) by L.B. Tillit
12: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs**
18: Audition by Stasia Ward Kehoe
25: Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin
28: Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin

March
3:  Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
6: Gil Marsh by A.C.E. Bauer
7: Scary School by Derek the Ghost
15: Hallowed by Cynthia Hand**
17: Heartbeat by Sharon Creech
23: Perfect by Ellen Hopkins
28: Life Is But a Dream by Brian James
31: I Can't Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure



April
2: The Queen of Kentucky by Alecia Whitaker
6:Purity by Jackson Pearce
9: The One That I Want by Jennifer Echols +
16:  One Week In December by Holly Chamberlin +
18:  First Comes Love by Katie Kacvinsky
21: Never Enough by Denise Jaden
22: Purple Daze by Sherry Shahan

27: How to Be Bad by Lauren Myracle, E. Lockhart, and Sarah Mlynowski +
29: Rules for Hearts by Sara Ryan



May
1: Zero by Tom Leveen
5: The Selection by Kiera Cass
9: The Unbearable Book Club for Unsinkable Girls by Julie Schumacher
15: The Forgetting Curve by Angie Smibert
19: 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson +
19: Inexcusable by Chris Lynch

20: Fade by Lisa McMann
20: Gone by Lisa McMann
22: Hourglass by Myra McEntire
27: Last Stop This Town by David H. Steinberg
28: My First Love By Callie West

June
10: Hereafter by Tara Hudson ***
10: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare audiobook
12: Crazy by Amy Reed +
16: Such a Rush By Jennifer Echols
22: Arise by Tara Hudson +
24: One Moment by Kristina McBride



July
4: Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard
6: But I Love Him by Amanda Grace +
7: Vegan Virgin Valentine by Carolyn Mackler

12: Shine by Jeri Smith-Ready
14: I Got This by Jennifer Hudson *
15: Jersey Angel by Beth Ann Bauman
19: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
23: Waiting by Carol Lynch Williams
25: On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves
28: Double Clutch by Liz Reinhardt +

August
3: Junk Miles by Liz Reinhardt +
5: Slow Twitch by LIz Reinhardt +
13: Dear Bully: Seventy Authors Tell Their Stories ed, by Megan Kelley Hall and Carrie Jones
17: All About Daisy by O'Dell Hutchison
22: Triangles by Ellen Hopkins
27:  The Stone Girl by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

30: Temptation by Karen Ann Hopkins

September
1: Stoner & Spaz by Ron Koertge
1: Dead to You by Lisa McMann
2: From What I Remember by Stacy Kramer and Valerie Thomas
3: Lush by Natasha Friend
11: Timepiece by Myra McEntire
14: Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone (DNF, 126 pages)
17: Stolen by Lucy Christopher *
19: Saving June by Hannah Harrington +
23: Easy by Tammara Webber+
24: Second Chance by Katie Kacvinsky+
25: Hana by Lauren Oliver +

October
6:  ttyl by Lauren Myracle
7: The Unnaturalists by Tiffany Trent
8: The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) by Kody Keplinger + ***
9: Never Enough Stories by Denise Jaden
12: Hick by Andrea Portes +
13:  How I Changed My Life by Todd Strasser
13: Burnout by Adrienne Maria Vrettos
13: The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan ***
14: The Lucky Kind by Alyssa B. Sheinmel
23: Dark Lover by J.R. Ward

November
7: If I Know It's Coming by Nick Hupton
13: Ten by Gretchen McNeil
25:  Wild Girls by Mary Stewart Atwell

December
2: The Believing Game by Eireann Corrigan +
4:  Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire +
8:  Confessions of an Angry Girl by Louise Rozett
8:  Kissing Tennessee by Kathi Appelt
8: Forget Me Not by Carolee Dean
9: Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill
9: Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick ***
9: Love, Ghosts, & Facial Hair by Steven Herrick ***
13: Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian ***
16: Blubber by Judy Blume
22: Blaze (or Love in the Time of Supervillains) by Laurie Boyle Crompton
28: Annabel by Lauren Oliver +
29: Radiant by Cynthia Hand +
29: Chasing Sunset by Sami Lee +
30: Wrong Bed, Right Guy by Katee Robert +

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 
Imagination Designs