My Thoughts: PROTECTING TRUTH

Seraphina’s keeping a secret from her Wandering team: she’s perfecting her fighting skills. But telling Sam and Bishop the truth would only alert them to her plan: to go back in time, save her mom, and finish what she started. With the help of Turner, Bishop’s handsome twin, she progresses toward her goal but plummets deeper into dangerous territory where the lines of friendship and romance are blurred. One passionate kiss changes everything, leading Sera to unravel a shocking web of family secrets, heartbreaking ulterior motives, and sinister agendas. Love and lies collide in a haunting climax, where the truest souls may not survive.

Miss Michelle has done it again. I had the distinct pleasure of reading PROTECTING TRUTH recently, and I have to say… It’s AWESOME! I just love Michelle Warren and her stories. If you missed the first installment to the SERAPHINA PARRISH TRILOGY, WANDER DUST, you seriously need to go catch up. You can get this delish piece of reading at a crazy reasonable price for your eReader. Just DO IT! 

WANDER DUST laid the perfect groundwork for PROTECTING TRUTH. In WD, we are introduced to our characters and this underground world of Wandering, a type of time-traveler. Miss Michelle took us on this wild journey of discovery and wicked action scenes that still have me foaming at the mouth. We met Sera, who totally needs to be my friend, and her uber wonderful Protector, Bishop. ‘Scuse me whilst I swoon a bit….

PROTECTING TRUTH had all that….and then some. We come into the story with the yummilishious Bishop overseas visiting his family and Sera is up to her blue-violet eyes in defense training. Side note: There are few things in this world that I love more than a butt-kicking heroine (literally). Our girl is beating herself silly to be a better fighter. Why? ‘Cause she has a date with Cece, the evil B that’s holding her mom prisoner. The I’m-taking-you-down kind of date. And Sera is getting seriously good at this fighting stuff. Problem is, Bishop doesn't know, and Sera really doesn't want him to find out.

There’s also this little problem with Bishop’s elusive fraternal twin, Turner, who we didn't really get to meet in WD. ‘Scuse me whilst I swoon again… Boy do I love me some Turner. He’s intelligent, good with his hands (Erm…for inventing/creating trinkets and hologram machinery of course so get your mind out of the gutter), and has this dark side to him that is holy-mother-of-time-travels HAWT. But something doesn't seem right with Turner. Bishop hinted at some ‘sibling rivalry’ but it goes waaaay deeper than that.

PROTECTING TRUTH still had some action to die for, wonderfully descriptive holographic circuses that left me breathless, and swoon-worthy dates in London, but it was the deeper aspect that really drew me in. Miss Michelle brings us deeper into the Wandering world and we finally see how corrupted it is. Traitors are welcomed back into the halls of Washington Square Academy, Terease, or The Lady in Black, still terrorizes but there is much she’s not sharing, Sera believes the students are being bribed into the Wandering life, Bishop is holding devastating secrets, and Sera can’t fight the infuriating attraction she holds for Turner. The Academy is breached, the Underground holds too many cards, and we meet new people only to lose them. Tears, yes there are tears. PROTECTING TRUTH was truly non-stop and I loved every page.

The best part of PROTECTING TRUTH is the truth of the characters and their journey. Sera is wonderfully conflicted and I fell in love with her even more. She wants to do right, but somehow doesn’t quite make it. She battles with some major life-changing events and her growth through them are spot on. Sera’s far from perfect, but yet she is.

I've been a fan of this series from the very beginning and I cannot wait to see what’s next for Sera, Bishop and Sam. More please, Michelle!

In closing’ I’d like to share a snip-it to leave y’all salivating, much like I was reading it… Enjoy!

“To touch him would release his secrets. To kiss him would set him free.” 

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…

I wanna be a Wanderer!!!!

Ever since her sixteenth birthday, strange things keep happening to Seraphina Parrish.

The Lady in Black… burns Sera’s memories.

Unexplainable Premonitions… catapult her to other cities.

The Grungy Gang… wants to kill her.

And a beautiful, mysterious boy… stalks her.

But when Sera moves to Chicago, and her aunt reveals their family connection to a centuries old, secret society, she is immediately thrust into an unbelievable fantasy world, leading her on a quest to unravel the mysteries that plague her. In the end, their meanings crash into an epic struggle of loyalty and betrayal, and she’ll be forced to choose between the boy who has stolen her heart and the thing she desires most.

Wander Dust is the breathtaking fantasy that will catapult you through a story of time, adventure, and love.

I initially came across Michelle Warren through Inkpop (a division of Harper Teen for young writers/readers). She posted the first chapter of Wander Dust on the site and offered 'free reads' to others. I thought she was crazy, but I was also intrigued. So I read her snip-it and was instantly hooked!

Michelle takes us on a wild and mysterious ride, right from the first page. Each chapter brings more questions you just have to know the answers to. Who is this Lady in Black? Why is she sent to Chicago to go live with her aunt? Who are these creepy goons that seem to follow her after popping up out of thin air? Who? What? Why? Ahhhh!

The world Michelle creates is fantastic! Forgive my geek out moment, but I TOTALLY want to go to a school like the Academy! It's like a mish-mash of Hogwarts and House of Night with fantastically embellished rooms, crazy instructors, and out of this world that-so-should-not-be-real type of ambiance. Michelle describes everything so flawlessly it was like being there with Sera and Bishop.

The story behind Wander Dust is also incredible. I love a good time travel book and this one does not disappoint. The twist to the norm with the teams (Seer, Wanderer, and Protector) is fantastic and I love the chemistry required with the teams. Michelle weaves through a great plot full of intrigue, history, unexpected twists (which I LOVE), adventure and non-stop action. There was not a moment I got bored! It just keeps on a comin!

Sera, Bishop, Sam, Stu, Macey... I just loved Michelle's characters. They each had a great voice and true personality. Even Mona, Sera's aunt, is someone who I could totally have tea with. She is like that quirky relative you can't help but adore. Sera is a great lead character. She is strong, but doesn't know it. And it's not that cliche sort of quiet strengths, but a realistic holy-crap-who-am-I-to-think-I-can-actually-do-this-crap kind of chick. Bishop is a great guy and I so look forward to seeing more from him. Michelle kind of back-played him a bit so I have my questions. Don't get me wrong, he is totally swoon worthy. Hell, green eyes and a British accent... SWOON Bishop certainly has some background and I am anxious to learn more and see how the relationship between him and Sera plays out.

The romance was not as pronounced as you see in other YA reads, but that is not necessarily a bad thing! There were definitely those moments where you scream "JUST KISS HER ALREADY" at the printed words in front of your face. Moments that were incredibly sweet and made me giddy, and others where you could totally feel the fierce blush on Sera's face. It was awesome!

Overall, Wander Dust was a GREAT read and I am so glad I found another fantastic debut author! Do yourself a favor and pick this puppy up and READ IT! Michelle is working on book #2 as we speak and I am definitely looking forward to it.

Tantilizing Timeslip...Totally

One hour to rewrite the past . . . 

For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn't there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents' death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She's tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson's willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he's around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.

So I splurged and hit Books-a-Million the other day. Please do not rat on me to DH that I bought more books without prior authorization. I had to, it is morally imperative to my sanity to keep a healthy supply of reading material.

Anyway, among the books bought was a copy of Hourglass from Myra McEntire. I had been following her on Twitter and heard a lot of rather boastful reviews of the book. I have to admit I was intrigued. It certainly did not hurt that she was a fellow Tennessean.

From the very beginning I was drawn in. Hourglass starts off with a slap in the face of weirdness and keeps slapping. You don't really know what is going on other than Emerson sees dead people, but let's keep the Sixth Sense goofball references to a minimum.

Myra is a fantastic debut author. I have heard the rigamarole about the greatness of this novel and I was not disappointed. As I said the book had me from the beginning. By the time I reached mid-story I had fallen, quite willingly, for Michael and totally wanted Emerson as my BFF. Hourglass was absolutely hilarious with Emerson's wit and general semi-cynical outlook on life, which I am a huge fan of.

I am not familiar with time-slip/time-travel novels, but I didn't feel that anyone had to be in order to follow the plot. Miss Myra unravels this idea slowly through Emerson's discovery of what she can do and I never felt there was a data drop of crazy time travel philosophies that one would need a PhD to understand. Hourglass was perfectly balanced for amateur time related novel readers.

The main characters, Michael and Emerson, were fantastically written. Michael plays the part of the 'I want to do what is right' sort of drive and Emerson is clever, although a bit closed off after a less than favorable childhood, and just all around cool chick. I have to admit I was mentally fist bumping Emerson after she threw Michael over her shoulder pseudo-mini-ninja style. WOOT! But I digress...

Hourglass was a fast-paced read (finished in three days of obsessive cannot-put-it-down while making dinner bouts) and I was thoroughly entertained. The chemistry between Michael and Emerson was very pant worthy and I often giggled in true girly-girl fashion. The humor kept things sort of edgy when it could very well become oppressive with Emerson's tragic past. The concept may not be completely original, but I like the subtle twists Miss Myra plugs in. She just make me a Dr. Who fan after all...

The only thing remotely negative I can say about Hourglass is I felt sort of teased by Lily, Emerson's long-standing and patient best friend. We are given a super quick peek at some other twisting happening with Lily, but Miss Myra never indulges on this in Hourglass. It just makes me wonder what Miss Myra has in store for the next installment.

So do yourself a favor and pick up this read from Myra McEntire. She has a great voice and clever wit that translates well into her characters. Hourglass was fun, flirty, and a truly great read.

Did it rock my world? Yes, I give Hourglass an 8.5 on my Richter scale.