Trailer Park Tuesday (3): DEFIANCE

Blood, Sweat and Books hosts the Trailer Tuesday meme and you can check out their awesomeness as well. Since I live in Middle Tennessee, I decided to country-fy my meme and go the trailer park route. *snortle* In my home away from home, I will spotlight some of the awesome book trailers out there in the world. Since the bigguns don't really need my meager help with anything, I will focus mostly on the little dogs; the indie authors and the self pubbers out there.

This week, though, we are taking a peek at DEFIANCE from C.J. Redwine. Miss C.J. is a Nashville native so I felt regionally obligated to send a shout out. HA! Who am I kidding? I'm so excited about this book. Miss C.J. seems like a spitfire of a lady and I'm sure that will translate to her characters as well. Hell, I just read QUERY: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO GET STARTED, GET NOTICED AND GET SIGNED that she penned and her 'tude-ish voice was ever present there. The good kind of 'tude. The kind that makes me giggle and want to call her friend. 

Anyway, DEFIANCE is the first book of a planned series and I have heard all kinds of delish about it over the Twittersphere. The trailer? Well! Feast your eyes on the snip-it below and TELL me you don't get all stupid-giddy watching! My inner pyro may be the source of my giggles, but I have to say, DEFIANCE is definitely on my list of must haves.

Author: C.J. Redwine

Publication Date: 8/28/12

Goodreads Connection

Within the walls of Baalboden, beneath the shadow of the city’s brutal leader, Rachel Adams has a secret. While other girls sew dresses, host dinner parties, and obey their male Protectors, Rachel knows how to survive in the wilderness and deftly wield a sword. When her father, Jared, fails to return from a courier mission and is declared dead, the Commander assigns Rachel a new Protector, her father’s apprentice, Logan—the same boy Rachel declared her love for two years ago, and the same boy who handed her heart right back to her. Left with nothing but fierce belief in her father’s survival, Rachel decides to escape and find him herself. But treason against the Commander carries a heavy price, and what awaits her in the Wasteland could destroy her.

At nineteen, Logan McEntire is many things. Orphan. Outcast. Inventor. As apprentice to the city’s top courier, Logan is focused on learning his trade so he can escape the tyranny of Baalboden. But his plan never included being responsible for his mentor’s impulsive daughter. Logan is determined to protect her, but when his escape plan goes wrong and Rachel pays the price, he realizes he has more at stake than disappointing Jared.

As Rachel and Logan battle their way through the Wasteland, stalked by a monster that can’t be killed and an army of assassins out for blood, they discover romance, heartbreak, and a truth that will incite a war decades in the making.


Oh yeah, baby! It makes me wanna dance in my chair. =^)

Trailer Park Tuesday (2): AWRY

Blood, Sweat and Books hosts the Trailer Tuesday meme and you can check out their awesomeness as well. Since I live in Middle Tennessee, I decided to country-fy my meme and go the trailer park route. *snortle* In my home away from him, I will spotlight some of the awesome book trailers out there in the world. Since the bigguns don't really need my meager help with anything, I will focus on the little dogs; the indie authors and the self pubbers out there.

The little guys need love too, y'all!

This week let's take a look at the latest from the super sweet Chelsea Fine, AWRY. I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Chelsea at UtopYA a couple weeks ago. The woman is just too cute and reminded me of my little sister in so many ways I got homesick. She was totally down to earth and I totally fan-girled her over Tristan. Yuuummmm.... Tristan....

Anyhoo... AWRY is the second installment to the Archers of Avalon series and A MUST READ! I have not had the chance to get my greedy paws on AWRY (wink, wink Chelsea!) but I cannot wait. Team Tristan all the way, y'all!

Check out the trailer for AWRY and tell me, them boys is not de-LISH!

Author: Chelsea Fine

Publication Date: 6/10/12

Goodreads Connection

Sometimes love is meant to be. But sometimes...love is the death of you....

Seventeen-year-old Scarlet has just died. Only, dying isn't unusual for a girl under a centuries old curse that left her semi-immortal. 

This time, though, she comes back to her current life instead of awaking in a new one, and she realizes the curse is changing. Together with the immortal Archer brothers, Scarlet must piece together her life and try to break the curse before her impending death comes again.

Double yum. Oh yes, we will be reading AWRY.

Oh! and as an added bonus, tell me this is not just super juicy.... Love a hot guy with hot tattoos. Grrrr...

Tristan Archer and his wicked tattoo

You are soooo welcome! Happy reading, y'all!

TIMEPIECE: A piece of work

A threat from the past could destroy the future.

Kaleb Ballard was never supposed to be able to see ripples--cracks in time. Are his powers expanding, or is something very wrong? Before he can find out, Jonathan Landers, the man who tried to murder his father, reappears. Why is he back, and what, or whom, does he want?

In the wake of Landers's return, the Hourglass organization is given an ultimatum by a mysterious man. Either they find Landers and the research he has stolen on people who might carry the time gene, or time will be altered--with devastating results for the people Kaleb loves most. Now Kaleb, Emerson, Michael, and the other Hourglass recruits have no choice but to use their extraordinary powers to find Landers. But where do they even start? And when? Even if they succeed, just finding him may not be enough ...

The follow-up to Hourglass, Timepiece blends the paranormal, science fiction, mystery, and suspense genres into a nonstop thrill ride where every second counts.

Myra, oh Myra. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways… Okay, seriously, enough with the swoony crap! I can’t help it, though. The woman is awesome.

TIMEPIECE, the second installment to the Hourglass books, released just last month. I know, I’m a wee late in my reading. *sheepish grin* If you haven’t read HOURGLASS, you seriously need to. Here, let me help. Click HERE to snag yourself a copy and read up on the little spitfire known as Emerson Cole. You also need to understand Em to really appreciate some of TIMEPIECE.

See, Myra McEntire flipped the script on us and TIMEPIECE was written entirely from Kaleb Ballard’s POV. Yummmm….Kaleb…. Sorry, I was typing something wasn’t I? Back on track. Ahem… So yeah, Kaleb is so different to read from than Em. HOURGLASS was from her POV. We got a sense of Kaleb in HOURGLASS, but he shines in TIMEPIECE like the sweat on my brow from trying to eat a Fireball.

Some time has passed when we pick up TIMEPIECE. But it opens with a bang, I tell you. I thought I was seriously gonna have to stalk Miss Myra and sucker-punch her for such an opening! Alas, all came around and I cooled my heels.

Jack Landers is still on the loose, we meet a creepy Poe guy who has a freak time related ability our Team Hourglass can’t figure out, Teague may not be as bad as we think, or possibly just worse, Chronos is just a myth along with the Infinityglass…or are they?

TIMEPIECE hooked me in with Kaleb’s unique voice and snarky southern gentleman who remembers his manners…in most occasions. Many questions from HOURGLASS are answered, but many more take their place with TIMEPIECE. We learn more about Jack, along with a face-slap that I saw coming. (giggle) Kaleb and his dad play a little emotional ping-pong that broke my heart at times. Sometimes a big, tatted, pierced, screw-up (at least that's how he sees himself) like Kaleb needs a hug too! Geez!

Then we have Lily. Our little Tiger Lily. Oh, I just thought I loved Emerson. And I do, but Lily is my kind of GIRL! Feisty, smart, feisty, direct, feisty, doesn’t put up with anyone’s BS, feisty, and she has a heart of pure platinum! Did I mention she’s feisty? The banter between Lily and Kaleb KILLED me. Love it. I also have to admit there were numerous occasions where I screamed out “kiss her already!” Scared my dog when I did.

In fact, allow me to share a spoiler-free favorite line of mine: “I wanted to unzip my skin and pull her inside.” Ooooh nelly! Yum-mmy!

Emerson and Michael take a bit of a backseat in TIMEPIECE, sort of. They are there and the tension between Kaleb and Mike, when it comes to Em, is pretty awesome. Then the tension, AGAIN, between Kaleb and Mike, when it comes to Liam Ballard (Kaleb’s dad), was just wow. Kaleb has, shall we say, some daddy issues. More heartbreak here…

Anyway, I felt the overall feel of TIMEPIECE was sort of like a countdown. Even when the book was done, I still felt the tick-tick-tick of something in the corner. Sure, we learned some about Chronos, the Infinityglass, and how Team Hourglass needs to figure out/find both to secure the time continuum, but so much still hangs in the balance. What is Chronos, really? Can Lily find the Infinityglass? Will Jack find it first? Will Teague? What if Team Hourglass accidentally gets stuck in the new live-and-in-person rips that plague Ivy Springs? If Team Hourglass does find the Infinityglass, will they still have time to put everything right? Or will everyone’s timeline get screwed and our fave freak magnets end up on completely different timelines?

We will have to wait for INFINITYGLASS to know for sure…

Trailer Park Tuesday (1)

Alright peeps! I'm going to jump on the meme wagon, but tweak things a bit. Why? Because I can't leave well enough alone. Ask my mom.

Blood, Sweat and Books hosts the Trailer Tuesday meme and you can check out their awesomeness as well. Since I live in Middle Tennessee, I decided to country-fy my meme and go the trailer park route. *snortle* Going forward, I will spotlight some of the awesome book trailers out there in the world. Since the bigguns don't need my help with anything, I will be focusing on the little dogs; the indie authors and the self pubbers out there.

The little guys need love too, y'all!

This week I would like to honor the lovely and crazy talented Raine Thomas. Miss Raine was the inaugural winner of Best Trailer Award at UtopYA Con this past weekend. And seriously, this trailer is AWESOME! If you have not seen the DEFY trailer, please treat yourself...

Author: Raine Thomas

Publication Date: 4/29/12

Goodreads Connection

Defy

Seventeen-year-old Tate is about to make her parents’ dreams come true. Unfortunately for her, their dreams foretell her death.

Eager to explore the Estilorian plane and prove her abilities, Tate goes against her parents’ wishes and leaves the area of protection surrounding her home. Her choice puts her on a deadly path…one that leaves her alone, severely injured and battling for her life.

Tell me that just does not get you all tingly! Awesome. I adore Raine, she was fantastic to meet and I look forward to the FIRSTBORN trilogy.

What about you? Seen any awesome trailers lately you are just DYING to tell others about?

There is room at the top for ALL of us!

Many, many apologies to everyone for sort of falling off the face of the earth. With managing some health issues, my 10 1/2 year old Lab's health issues, and seemingly endless life crap, things just sort of...well, went to the crapper. That's me being honest, and PG-13.

Anyway, that's neither here nor there. As you may have seen from my multiple tweets on the subject, I was very excited about a wee event called UtopYA Con that took place right here in Nashville. A start-up convention for YA paranormal writers, authors, and all the freakin' readers who obsess... stalk... LOVE to read! I knew it would be the cat's meow, and I was right. Over the next several days, or weeks as time wills, I will try to recap some of the awesome I experienced over the last couple days.

For now, I just have to give my thanks. Many, many thanks.

Janet Wallace, Nashville's Kid-Lit Meet-Up group organizer and owner of Social Deviants, birthed this idea for UtopYA and she did a phenomenal job. This was the second time I've gone to this sort of event, the first being the SCBWI Conference in NYC. SCBWI was big and awesome and crazy informative, but UtopYA had something in it I didn't really find at SCBWI NYC. I thought I had, and I'm sure it IS there, but it was not as blazingly obvious as it was at UtopYA.

That thing, is HEART.

I'm not a hard core writer. I will be the first to admit this. There are so many freakin' awesome writers and authors out there. Me? I'm the sort of misfit kid in the back of the room that never really...'fit.' But I LOVE to write. It has freed me in so many ways over the last two years. Quite literally, I have finally found...me. It took thirty mumble-grumble years to do it, but hell if I found her finally.

UtopYA oozed with wonderful people that were just like you and me. Some were traditionally published, most were either indie published or self published, some just budding out on the page. Did they throw it around like a fluorescent pink boa with diamond crusting? Nope. Did they spout stats like a stock broker on crack and zero sleep? Nuh-uh. Were they welcoming? Were they excited to meet someone who has read, or is dying to read, one or all of their books? You bet your buttered biscuit baby!

When I say UtopYA has the heart I didn't find at other, larger, meets, I mean it. We were all there for the same reason: we love YA paranormal. There was a common unity no matter where you are in your career. The writing community really IS a community. It is a family that I am so very proud to be a part of. I still feel sort of like a distant cousin tip-toeing around the edges at times, but I still felt it. I felt the heart of this Con. I felt the heart of UtopYA.

Will it be the same in 2013? I sure as hell hope so! But really, I think it will. Everyone there, I think, picked up on the same vibe. We are readers. We are writers. We are authors. We are a group of people who LOVE to help the next coming. "There is room for all of us!" "A success for one, is a success for all." We all strive to the same goal: readers. And readers LOVE to read...a LOT.

The lovely Willow Cross said in a panel I attended, and I will paraphrase here: it might take her readers a week to read her novel, what are they going to do with the other 51 weeks of the year? 'If you like my books, here, check out my friend's book too!'

That is what we do as writers, as authors. Support. Community. Family. Friends. You CAN do it. We ALL can do it.

Willow Cross, Raine Thomas, Amanda Havard, Myra McEntire, Chelsea Fine, Tiffany King, L.M. Preston, Angeline Kace, Teal Haviland, Tammy Blackwell, M.R. Polish, Amy Bartol, Abbi Glines... oh my word there are just too many. All of these women were phenomenal to meet and share experiences with. We laughed, we cried, we joked, we teased. We were just like those crazy cousins that get together at family reunions and gossip over who is doing what.

And why?

Because we are a community. We are a community of writers. And there is room for ALL of us.

Will YOU be a part next time? UtopYA Con 2013 is on the books. Come be part of the HEART of this awesomesauce community. You will NOT be disappointed. Come play. Come laugh. Come learn. Come fan-girl. Come be a part of the family.





Footnote. Yes, I totally cried writing this whole thing. But I'm a crier. That's how I roll y'all. =^)

A book with GLOWing Potential

If a violent battle destroyed the only world you’ve ever known, would you be brave enough to save who was left? Would love be strong enough to survive the fight? Either way, there’s no turning back.

The Empyrean is the only home 15-year-old Waverly has ever known. Part of the first generation to be successfully conceived in deep space, she and her boyfriend Kieran will be pioneers of New Earth. Waverly knows she must marry young in order to have children who can carry on the mission, and Kieran, the handsome captain-to-be, has everything Waverly could want in a husband. Everyone is sure he’s the best choice. Still, there’s a part of Waverly that wants more from life than marriage, and she is secretly intrigued by the shy, darkly brilliant Seth.

Suddenly, Waverly’s dreams are interrupted by the inconceivable – a violent betrayal by the Empyrean's sister ship, the New Horizon. The New Horizon’s leaders are desperate to populate the new planet first, and will do anything to get what they need: young girls. In one pivotal moment, Waverly and Kieran are separated, and find themselves at the helm of dangerous missions, where every move has potentially devastating consequences, and decisions of the heart may lead to disaster.

Thanks to the lovely folks over at Goodreads, I scored a copy of Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan in their First Reads contest. I had seen Glow floating around on other blogs and such, but had not actually bought it. The premise sounded interesting so figured "what the hell" and entered. I think I actually entered First Reads a couple of times for this book, but whatev...

This was an awesome little diddy! When other reviews say this book takes off with a bang, they ain't kidding. Right out of the gate Miss Amy has you by the jugular and you keep going. You think, "Oh, I will wait until the pace settles before I start dinner." Yeah, right. Call a pizza, 'cause you are not so much making dinner. HA!

The thing that got me right off the bat was the scene. The whole story takes place on one or two spaceships bound for New Earth. One would think there might be problems here with world building, but alas...no. Now I have to sheepishly admit that I'm kind of a Sci-Fi nerd. A big Star Wars fan, loved the Alien movies, Pandorum, Event Horizon, yada yada yada...you see where this is going. I LOVE Sci-Fi thrillers. Something about being stuck in space in a metal box is just plain scary.

But I digress...

Amy builds a wonderful world on the Empyrean and the New Horizon. You obviously cannot see how large these ships are or how intricate the engineering, but Amy gives you a phenomenal picture. Between the orchards, the animals, the people, and the farms, you get a great sense of how BIG these ships are. And even though she does not describe with fine detail, Amy creates the greatest picture of the ship in your head. I was amazed. One could certainly get lost in the details of describing something you've never seen, but Miss Amy does it well.

Like I said, the action is non-stop. Waverly goes through hell as does Kieran and Seth. At points you feel sorry for all of them, but you want them to keep fighting. The tension never seems to cease, and just when you think it's starting to...BAM something goes wrong.

I really enjoyed the characters as well. Waverly is sort of your girl next door. She is the semi-reluctant hero. The only reason she does what she does is, well, she's the oldest so it's expected of her. All of the younger girls look to her as an elder of sorts so she feels obligated to step up to the plate.

Seth. This boy is the brooding nobody. He's wicked smart, but has a chip on his shoulder the size of Mount Everest. Seth kind of 'loses it' and I'm hoping he gets a chance to redeem himself in the next installment because I really like him. He doesn't back down, doesn't take no for an answer, but he has some "daddy issues" to work through.

Kieran. I'm on the fence with Kieran. The token golden boy. The prodigal son. Kieran is the guy who has everything going for him; he's smart, he's talented, he's got the girl, he's the Captain's favorite... He has it all. When things go from bad to worse (and then worse still), Kieran is given the chance to walk the walk. At first that 'walk' is more like a drunken stagger, but he is starting to get his legs under him.

My only real beef with Glow came toward the end and I thought I might have to put it down. It started to get preachy for me. Now, I have nothing against those folks who are the church-going type, I'm just not one of them. I'm not a big religious book reader so when I saw a sort of preachy feel develop I groaned (a lot) but pushed through.

And I'm glad I did.

What started off sounding like "if you don't believe in God and don't worship Him and give Him thanks for everything in your life, you are an evil and contemptuous person" turned out to be more twisted than I had originally thought. Me likely this. *evil grin*

So in the end, I really enjoyed Glow and am definitely looking forward to Spark, the next installment to the Sky Chasers series. I would like to see if Waverly has it in her to be a leader, if Seth can truly love, and if Kieran will, well, get his head out of his butt...

Did Glow rock my world? Not the fall-out-of-bed kind, but a solid 6.5

CITY OF LOST SOULS Just...wow

If you read YA chances are you read, or have read, Cassandra Clare. If you have not... Well, I have nothing to say other than... WTH!! You need to!

I know there will be a million and one reviews of City of Lost Souls out there, so I decided to do something different here. The last thing you need is yet another review of a book from a series that is not only a best seller, from a fab author who rocks our socks, but is also in the makings of a movie! The Mortal Instruments is one of my all time favorites series and I am here to tell you why. Why I rave about these books to anyone who will listen, and others who just tolerate my ramblings with near patience.

In short, these books have everything!

Raising an eyebrow? Questioning my sanity? Allow me to explain.

Now I'm no literary expert, but I know what I like. When my friend Rachel first introduced me to TMI, her words were something like "not too much on the romance, but they were pretty good." But Rachel is a BIG romance fan. She said it had lots of demons, vampires, fae, and other stuff. This alone made me take City of Bones home. Oh, and she said the main guy, Jace, was pretty hot. That helped too. *wink*

As far as I'm concerned, Cassandra Clare is a master crafts...uh...woman for story telling. She wraps you around her little finger and takes you for a wild, crazy, heartbreaking ride. And you enjoy every minute of it. There is action, adventure, love, lust, friendships, enemies, characters you love, characters you hate, characters you LOVE to HATE, plot twists that leave you breathless, worlds so believable you look over your own shoulder...the whole tamale people!

My gateway drug to Fantasy Fiction was The Lord of the Rings. A tough read for a beginner I s'pose, but I was HOOKED. After that I got completely immersed in The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (may he rest in peace). Another fantasy fave was the Forgotten Realms books from R.A. Salvatore.

Miss Cassie, for me, is on the lines of these books. Her worlds are so thought out it's spooky. Every time I read one of her books I'm amazed at the detail she incorporates. The politics of Shadowhunter lives, the relations between Shadowhunter and Downworlder, and the history of the Nephilim race fascinates me.

But she doesn't stop there. The plotting involved in Cassie's books leaves my head spinning. It makes the writer in me BEG (and I mean beg to the point of delirium) to be a fly in the room as she plots a book. The characters' lives twist in and out of each other so much I'm left in awe.

This is particularly noticeable with City of Lost Souls.

I'm sure there were references to previous Shadowhunters in the first four TMI books, but I don't recall them offhand. While reading COLS, however, Cassie makes several references to her prequel series, The Infernal Devices (Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince). Having read these books recently, they stuck out like a hobo clown at an Amish wedding. I can't help but wonder if Cassie plans her books this way or if they just happen naturally, like magic, like slow churned vanilla ice cream and hot brownies, like peanut butter and chocolate...

I got so freakin' giddy reading COLS it was really kind of pathetic. My writer side totally geeked out with how intertwined the plots are between the books. You don't have to read one series to understand the other, since they both give the necessary background, but why would you not WANT to read both? And the connections are subtle too, which is awesome, so those readers who have read both series don't feel like they're being pulled out of one story and into another. From a passing glance that catches an odd angel pendant with gears and such for wings, a mysterious Silent Brother, Zachariah, and quick references to a lost love with dark hair and blue eyes... I just cannot help the fangirl in me!!!!

It really is books like The Mortal Instrument series, and the Infernal Devices, that inspire me to write. The deep seeded worlds of Shadowhunter life, or Middle Earth, or Menzobarrenzan make me want to create such rich worlds of my own. Horribly conflicted characters like Jace Lightwood, Will Herondale, Boromir, Frodo Baggins, and Drizzt Do'Urden inspire me to reach the ultimate conflicts with my own characters. To push them to their limits. To find what makes them break. And what will bring them back together again.

This is not to say other books don't inspire me to write, and write well. There are just books you enjoy, and then there are books that take you to that place. That place, that space, between a totally happy voracious reader, and the other realm that gives you the drive to BE a part of that world. To create that feeling in the pit of the belly for others that you feel reading your favorite books. To make your readers want to WOOT out loud, to cry openly, to get so mad at a character you consider for a nanosecond throwing the book across the room, to fall in love, and to get so lost in a world it FEELS real...

That is what Cassandra Clare does for me. That is why I love her books. She is the whole package. I love her books, I love her worlds, I love her characters, but I also love the way she inspires the writer in me.

What about you? Who inspires YOU to write your pants off?