tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24626357472098740962024-03-19T05:55:46.678-04:00ramblings of the perpetual new girlbook blogging here and there...perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.comBlogger110125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-45744648508648487082019-01-18T14:05:00.000-05:002019-01-18T14:05:16.698-05:00BOOK REVIEW: Parkland Speaks edited by Sarah Lerner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b style="color: #757575; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">SYNOPSIS:</b><br style="color: #757575; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #757575; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><br style="font-family: roboto, sans-serif;" /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #757575; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><br />
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<b style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Featuring art and writing from the students of the Parkland tragedy, this is a raw look at the events of February 14, and a poignant representation of grief, healing, and hope.</b><br style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" /><br style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School share their emotional journeys that began on February 14, 2018, and continue today. This revealing and unfiltered look at teens living in the wake of tragedy is a poignant representation of grief, anger, determination, healing, and hope.</span><br style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" /><br style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The intimate collection includes poetry, eyewitness accounts, letters, speeches, journal entries, drawings, and photographs from the events of February 14 and its aftermath. Full of heartbreaking loss, a rally cry for change, and hope for a safe future, these artistic pieces will inspire readers to reflect on their own lives and the importance of valuing and protecting the ones you love.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">A touchstone for anyone who has been driven to speak out and have a voice in today's climate, this revealing and unfiltered look at teens living in the wake of tragedy is a poignant representation of grief, anger, determination, healing, and hope. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">A portion of the proceeds will benefit Shine MSD, Inc., an organization formed by Marjory Stoneman Douglas students to support victims' families and to heal the Parkland community through the arts.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Vollkorn, serif; font-size: 14px;">SARAH LERNER is an English teacher, journalism teacher, and yearbook advisor at MSD in Parkland, Florida. She began teaching in 2002 and was named the <i>Sun-Sentinel</i> High School Journalism Teacher of the Year in 2014. Sarah lives in Florida with her husband and two children.</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/601937/parkland-speaks-by-edited-by-sarah-lerner/9781984849991/">Website</a> ~ <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18152842.Sarah_Lerner">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/mrs_lerner">Twitter</a></div>
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<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: times, 'times new roman', serif;"><b>Title: <i>Parkland Speaks</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: times, 'times new roman', serif;"><b>Publisher: </b>Random House </span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: times, 'times new roman', serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>January 22, 2019</span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: times, 'times new roman', serif;"><b style="color: #606060;">Editor(s): Sarah Lerner</b></span></li>
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<b><br /></b><b><b>REVIEW:</b> </b><br /><b><br />When looking at the synopsis of <i>Parkland Speaks</i>, the words "intimate collection" stood out. While reading through these heartbreakingly personal pieces of those who survived, it's hard not to feel drawn into a quiet, enveloping circle of grief. A reflective mood that will pull readers away from the safety of their own reality and into a raw, first-person accounting of the aftermath of a horrific experience. </b></div>
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<b>You will be affected -- by sadness, anger, and an overwhelming sense to protect your loved ones from ever having to face such danger in a place they thought safe.</b></div>
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<b><i>Parkland Speaks</i> treats each person, carefully and responsibly. Their thoughts presented with respectful attention and in a way that speaks to the innocence lost having been eyewitness to this tragedy. A beautiful portrait of enduring faith in the future, and a committed community that has come together to show the world; these people, these lives, and these voices will not be silenced. </b></div>
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<b>Healing takes time, and <i>Parkland Speaks</i> shows off how strong the younger generation is, even as they face their own finite existence every day they walk the halls of their school.</b></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-46890489672625529622018-11-02T11:10:00.002-04:002018-11-02T11:10:19.773-04:00BLOG TOUR: A Sorrow Fierce and Falling by Jessica Cluess<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white;">Magic, romance, and heart-pounding action bring the final book in the Kingdom on Fire series to a shocking and satisfying close. Justine Magazine says, “A pinch of Potter blended with a drop of [Cassandra Clare’s] Infernal Devices.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">After suffering terrible losses, Henrietta and Lord Blackwood have led their warriors to Sorrow-Fell, a vast estate where only those invited by a Blackwood may enter–and the ideal place to plan a final assault against the Ancients.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">Henrietta nervously awaits her marriage to Blackwood, but when the ritual to become his bride reveals a dark secret, she realizes that Sorrow-Fell is not a safe haven; it’s a trap. Convincing the sorcerers of this, however, is not easy. So with Maria, the true chosen one, and Magnus, the young man who once stole her heart, at her side, Henrietta plots a dangerous journey straight into the enemy’s lair. Some will live. Some will die. All will be tested.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">In this stunning conclusion to the Kingdom on Fire series, Henrietta must choose between the love from her past, the love from her present, and a love that could define her future. While battles rage, the fate of the kingdom rests on her decision: Will she fall or rise up to become the woman who saves the realm?</span></div>
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<i style="background-color: white; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It’s time for Henrietta to make her stand.</i></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Vollkorn, serif; font-size: 14px;">Jessica Cluess is a writer, a graduate of Northwestern University, and an unapologetic nerd. After college, she moved to Los Angeles, where she served coffee to the rich and famous while working on her first novel. When she’s not writing books, she’s an instructor at Writopia Lab, helping kids and teens tell their own stories.</span><br />
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<a href="http://jessicacluess.com/">Website</a> ~ <a href="https://www.instagram.com/jesscluess/?hl=en">Instagram</a> ~ <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6916708.Jessica_Cluess">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/JessCluess">Twitter</a></div>
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<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Title: <i>A Sorrow Fierce and Falling</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publisher: </b>Random House </span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>October 16, 2018</span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="color: #606060;">Author(s): <a href="http://jessicacluess.com/">Jessica Cluess</a></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Series: <i>The Kingdom on Fire</i></b></span></li>
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<b><b>REVIEW:</b> </b><br />
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<b>Jessica Cluess completes her vibrant <i>The Kingdom on Fire</i> series with an ending most of us were expecting, and I can admit its predictability hurt the characterizations of certain characters that I would've preferred more depth for; ultimately though, <i>A Sorrow Fierce and Falling</i> gave me the romance I wished most to see. </b><br />
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<b>One of the most brilliant bits about <i>A Sorrow Fierce and Falling</i> is how everything comes together thrillingly from the start and just keeps culminating event after event for a quick, intense read. Henrietta remains steadfast and loyal to the ones she loves and it makes her quite likable. She comes across as down to earth still and while her life circumstances changed drastically, she takes her responsibility seriously and all encompassing; unwilling to leave no person outside her protection. She might not be the "chosen one" but she will do her best to make certain no one suffers because of her mistakes, her ignorance. These traits make her a worthy adversary to those oh so familiar villains. And even if plotting doesn't feel as twisty and bendy as I would like it, I am here for Henrietta and her happily ever after.</b><br />
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<b>A darn good finale to a very welcome sort of heroine, <i>A Sorrow Fierce and Falling</i> deserves a spot on any YA lovers' must read list.</b></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-23362885754797870732017-04-18T07:00:00.000-04:002017-04-18T07:00:00.156-04:00BLOG TOUR: The Whole Thing Together by Ann Brashares<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Ann Brashares, beloved author of the bestselling <i>The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants</i> series, which has sold over 8.7 million copies in all formats, is back with another unforgettable story about fractured families, first love, and loss in her latest novel,<span style="font-size: 18px;"> </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><i>THE WHOLE THING TOGETHER</i></span><span style="color: #545454; font-family: "lato" , sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">, </span><span style="color: #545454; font-family: inherit; font-size: 18px;">which carries a first printing of 100,000 copies. Readers will feel the sand between their toes and smell the salty air of Brashares’s Long Island beach town setting, which serves as the backdrop for Sasha and Ray’s unusual and budding relationship.</span>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Summer for Sasha and Ray means the sprawling old house on Long Island. Since they were children, they’ve shared almost everything—reading the same books, running down the same sandy footpaths to the beach, eating peaches from the same market, laughing around the same sun-soaked dining table. Even sleeping in the same bed, on the very same worn cotton sheets. But they’ve never met.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sasha’s dad was once married to Ray’s mom, and together they had three daughters: Emma, the perfectionist; Mattie, the beauty; and Quinn, the favorite. But the marriage crumbled and the bitterness lingered. Now there are two new families—and neither one will give up the beach house that holds the memories, happy and sad, of summers past.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The choices we make come back to haunt us; the effect on our destinies ripples out of our control... or does it? This summer, the lives of Sasha, Ray, and their siblings intersect in ways none of them ever dreamed, in a novel about family relationships, keeping secrets, and most of all, love. </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Booklist </em><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">hailed </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><i>THE WHOLE THING TOGETHER</i> </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">as “quintessential Brashares,” and fans of Brashares’s work as well as new readers will dive wholeheartedly into this original story that is a love letter to romance, summertime, and family—no matter how unconventional they may be.</span></span><br />
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<b>ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdYglHragPMiUbO0K7-P9pXXb4kd0eRidEogc2EYzzsNEF8p8r9InnQWXVPgM6CADWsxtIzyKonNWgR1oOyfYkC-Sulvj8X7RR5hnX-6ZFz9X_0_lcTvHvSGwfkIO1sYKSKx5cHcPCgl0/s1600/annbrash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdYglHragPMiUbO0K7-P9pXXb4kd0eRidEogc2EYzzsNEF8p8r9InnQWXVPgM6CADWsxtIzyKonNWgR1oOyfYkC-Sulvj8X7RR5hnX-6ZFz9X_0_lcTvHvSGwfkIO1sYKSKx5cHcPCgl0/s200/annbrash.jpg" width="189" /></a></div>
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Ann Brashares is the #1 <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of the The Sisterhoold of the Traveling Pants series, The Here and Now, 3 Willows, The Last Summer (of You & Me), and My Name Is Memory. She lives in New York City with her family. Follow her on Twitter -- @AnnBrashares.<br />
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<a href="http://annbrashares.com/books">Website</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AnnBrasharesAuthor">Facebook</a> ~ <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31123236-the-whole-thing-together">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/annbrashares">Twitter</a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;"><b>DETAILS:</b></span></span></div>
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<ul style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, utopia, 'palatino linotype', palatino, serif; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Title: <i>The Whole Thing Together</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publisher: </b>Delacorte Press</span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>April 25, 2017</span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="color: #606060;">Author(s): <a href="http://annbrashares.com/books">Ann Brashares</a></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Series: <i>Standalone</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Rating:<i> </i>Sour Apple</b></span></li>
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<b>QUICK REVIEW:</b>
</b>Brashares can hook her readers in even with multiple POVs and scenery stealing locations. Characters usually do not get overwhelmed by her stylized and switcheroo narration. However, in <i>The Whole Thing Together</i>, plotting that otherwise seems pretty ideal for romance gets lost in the shadowed, and loosely developed storylines -- of which there are many perspectives. Maybe that's why the entire book felt off. As someone who adored Brashares <i>'Traveling Pants'</i> multiple narration, her lack of cohesive, readable narrative here stood out to me. Comparison can breed contempt, and that could be why <i>The Whole Thing Together</i> fell flat. Overdramatic, a tad stereotypical, some distressing racist and sexist content that younger readers might not quite understand in the context and a definite confusion as to why this book is classified YA and not New Adult or just Fiction; I had a hard time completing this one without thinking how much better Ann Brashares' other books have been and how more worthy of a reread they are than forcing myself to like this one.<br />
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-22348243125157414132017-03-27T07:00:00.002-04:002021-04-02T14:34:56.026-04:00AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Lindsay Currie & Trisha Leaver<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZjMjPmisyd2Cr5tpM8g-QSabpJAtShmx7hd4yWK7_LbY36Gtn6GMXskPCOpOuym_iv0f5PvzW5jiKtVUtroXoRINMiT3Z_n5RscVCs1fU-0pt61OQo1nUgJiviQsT8TcbFTly4dEG8jH/s320/sweetmad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZjMjPmisyd2Cr5tpM8g-QSabpJAtShmx7hd4yWK7_LbY36Gtn6GMXskPCOpOuym_iv0f5PvzW5jiKtVUtroXoRINMiT3Z_n5RscVCs1fU-0pt61OQo1nUgJiviQsT8TcbFTly4dEG8jH/s0/sweetmad.jpg" /></a></div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #545353; font-family: inherit; font-size: 16px;">When we talk about murders that freaked a nation out, especially ones that entire legends are built around — Lizzie Borden tops many lists. A daughter who took an axe to her parents. That’s some freaky behavior and what’s scarier is it has never really been explained.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Of course, there’s theories but since going back in time just isn’t possible, people can come up with their own stories by way of explanation. Trisha Leaver and Lindsay Currie did just that with their YA book: <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">SWEET MADNESS</span>.</span></div>
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First up, let them talk about just how their perspective of Lizzie was shaped.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW:</span></h4>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Why Lizzie Borden? Which of you became interested in the legend and what kind of research did you both do for the SWEET MADNESS?</em></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;">Well, Trisha lives on the East coast where the legend of the Borden murders is widely well known, so it naturally became the next subject matter for us to pursue! Plus, we’ve got a fascination with the dark, demented and creepy…and the legend of Lizzie Borden is all three <img alt="☺" class="emoji" draggable="false" src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/2.2.1/svg/263a.svg" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial initial !important; background-repeat: initial initial !important; border: none; box-shadow: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; height: 1em; margin: 0px 0.07em; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: -0.1em; width: 1em;" /></span></div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">So I’m new to your work, but always curious about how authors find their writing partners. The creative process can be brutal and some people isolate themselves, but how do you two work together? How did you know that a writing partnership would be possible between you two?</em></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;">We were originally critique partners for each other and one day, simply decided it would be fun to attempt to write a book together. It was just for fun, and we honestly never intended it to be a serious attempt at a young adult novel. But given that we have similar work ethics and writing styles, it actually ended up being a good project and we queried it, which landed us representation.</span></div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Did you always plan on being YA Scream Queens, writing scary stories, or did you happen upon it? Anything in your childhood have a lasting affect on you or scared you so much that you still have memories of it now that freak you out?</em></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><b>Lindsay:</b> I love the horror genre and nothing will change that, but I do also write contemporary young adult and if I’m so lucky as to have the opportunity, I plan to continue doing both. I grew up loving scary stories and movies, and still remember the first book I read (I was probably in third or fourth grade) that scared the crap out of me! It was called the <i>Dollhouse Murders</i> and was written by Betsy Ren Wright. Holy cow did it scare me, but in a delicious way. Pretty sure Ms. Wright cemented my love of things that slither in the shadows and go bump in the night <img alt="☺" class="emoji" draggable="false" src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/2.2.1/svg/263a.svg" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial initial !important; background-repeat: initial initial !important; border: none; box-shadow: none; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; height: 1em; margin: 0px 0.07em; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: -0.1em; width: 1em;" /></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">QUICK Q&A:</span></h4>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Favorite Famous Historical Figure and Why?</em><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Lindsay:</span> Nicolas Flamel. I’ve always been fascinated with the story behind this man and with movies like <i>As Above So Below</i> out there, it’s only stoking my interest.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: navy;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Trisha:</span> Currently, I have an unnatural fascination with Elizabeth Bathory. It is not her torturous hobbies that fascinate me—although they do make for some interesting reading—rather the purported reasoning behind her acts. Sorting myth from fact and trying to figure out who she really was and whether the political climate of 16th Century Hungary played a hand in the charges brought against her seems to occupy every spare minute of my time lately!</span><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Favorite Horror Flick?</em><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Lindsay:</span> It may be cheesy, but I still love the entire <i>Scream</i> series. </span><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: navy;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Trisha:</span> <i>Blair Witch Project</i></span><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Horror Maven Inspiration?</em><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Lindsay:</span> My inspiration is easily Stephen King. I grew up reading his stuff and truthfully, his ability to weave psychologically dark stories is just mind blowing and inspiring.</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: navy;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Trisha:</span> Shirley Jackson</span></span><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Friday the 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street?</em><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Lindsay:</span> <i>Friday the 13th!</i></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: navy;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Trisha:</span> <i>Nightmare on Elm Street</i></span></span><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">R. L. Stine, Christopher Pike or Lois Duncan and why?</em><br />
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Lindsay:</span> I gotta go with R.L. Stine on this one because again, I grew up reading him and he’s got the magic!</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: purple;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: navy;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Trisha:</span> Lois Duncan, and not because I don’t love the other two, but rather because I grew on up Lois Duncan. I still have vivid memories of fourteen-year-old me curled up on the couch with <i>Daughters of Eve</i>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "playfair display" , serif; font-size: 28px; font-weight: 600;">EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT:</span><br />
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Lizzie Borden took an axe</em><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">And gave her mother forty whacks.</em><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">When she saw what she had done,</em><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">She gave her father forty one.</em><br />
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I purposely took a roundabout way to Corky Row, making several unnecessary turns that did nothing more than loop me back to Second Street. But no matter how many times I changed direction, the sturdy and purposeful click of boots against pavement followed me. It wasn’t until I rounded the corner to Liam’s street that I gave in to my nervous discontent and hazarded a peek over my shoulder. It wouldn’t be the first time Lizzie had followed me, but usually she made her presence known by calling of my name.</div>
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The street behind me was nearly empty—a few beggar children and some maids hurrying to and from work—but no plainly-dressed woman of stature. No Lizzie.A flare of apprehension quickened my steps. I sought out an alleyway to duck into and concealed myself in the darkness until whoever was following me passed. I knew it was ridiculous. I’d told myself half a dozen times I was being overly suspicious, that my guilt about lying to Lizzie in the first place was getting the better of me. But no logical explanation, no amount of self-condemnation could stop the way I felt. It was that sensation of eyes on you when there shouldn’t be that made me believe I wasn’t alone.</div>
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I stepped behind an abandoned fruit cart, crouched down, and watched as a shadow appeared at the mouth of the alley. Lizzie. She paused, her eyes skittering across the darkened corridor as if debating whether I was foolish enough to risk my welfare with the vagrants who called these rat-infested passageways home. With a brisk nod of her head, she walked away, probably assuming I had more sense.</div>
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I counted to fifty, then eased my way out from behind the cart, slowly making my way back out to the cobblestone street. Half-hidden in the shadows, I scanned first to my left and then to my right, but she wasn’t there. It was as if she had vanished, as if her appearance at the end of the alleyway was nothing more than my conscience-stricken imagination chastising me for lying. But unlike Lizzie, I wasn’t prone to fits of fugue. I didn’t subscribe to the belief that the voices that plagued her were whispered from beyond, were . . . the voices of those drawn into the Borden curse.</div>
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What I saw and the uneasiness I felt were real. I was being followed, silently stalked by my own friend. And she was still there, carefully hidden out of sight. Lizzie wouldn’t sulk back home and occupy her time by reading her father’s mail or pawing through her stepmother’s belongings. No, she’d circle these streets until she found me.</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23340891-sweet-madness?from_search=true" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Madness-Trisha-Leaver/dp/1440588945/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426975833&sr=8-1&keywords=sweet+madness" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">Amazon</a> ~ <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sweet-madness-trisha-leaver/1121262963?ean=9781440588945" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">B&N</a> ~ <a href="http://www.lindsaycurrie.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">Lindsay Currie</a> ~ <a href="http://www.trishaleaver.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">Trisha Leaver</a> ~ <a href="http://www.twitter.com/lindsayncurrie%20" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">Twitter: Lindsay</a> ~ <a href="http://twitter.com/tleaver" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1) 0s;">Twitter: Trisha </a></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-41862880331224640742017-03-24T07:00:00.000-04:002017-03-24T01:02:39.758-04:00AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Joe Benitez, Author & Illustrator<div id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489174796780_8909">
<b><span style="color: #274e13;">Joe Benitez makes steampunk aesthetic come to life in a gritty, urban fantastic world featuring a kick-butt female lead. Of course, this lead struggles with identity and past and memory loss. It's a sci-fi treat, plotty and pretty.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">REVIEW: </span></b><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Steampunk aesthetics influenced me greatly growing up because of my love of <i>The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen</i>, <i>Sherlock Holmes</i> and Gaslight Novels. It is no surprise, one of my favorite Cons to attend is Dragon*Con given its elaborate grouping of steampunk enthusiasts and their top-notch, quality workmanship. Which is why, to some degree, I consider myself a bit of an expert in noticing niche, stand-out steampunk art. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In Joe Benitez's artwork, steampunk gets a gritty make-over... not enough for it to be classified cyber or industrial punk, but it is a fine-edged, Victorian combination that works great and makes for a highly attractive, kick-butt lady heroine. I adore how overly large the coloring pages feel with a lot of white space not diminished by extras bogging down the central, focal piece. It really allows the images to pop and show off the intricate steampunk details of the costumes on this charismatic character. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The pages are printed only on one side so that if there's bleed through of any kind, you will not destroy any of the other pieces. They tear out easily because of perforated edging and could be framed with or without matting. Yes! They are that cool! </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Also, when it says this coloring book is for all ages, that's true too. All images are comic book in nature, provocative, but not overtly sexualized that a teen fan or younger would be embarrassed to have out. And don't forget to go and see the graphic novels featuring <i>LADY MECHANIKA</i> for the story behind this kick-butt heroine. - </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: times, 'times new roman', serif;"><i>(Rating: Peachy Keen)</i></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #274e13; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>INTERVIEW:</b></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #274e13;">1. How do you define steampunk and why do you think it has become such a popular aesthetic in today's fandom?</span></b></div>
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Steampunk is Victorian Era science fiction, an imagining of what the world would look like if technology was more advanced in that time period (late 1800s), sci-fi tech with an Old World aesthetic. Visually it combines elegant outfits with goggles, gears, and gadgets. I think it's become popular in part because the steampunk subculture is all about artistry and handcrafted items. It isn't about sticking to what you know, but letting your imagination soar. In cosplay, for example, it isn't about dressing up as a particular character (though of course some people do) but creating your own character, designing your own costumes and gadgets and furniture, all using an old school look that some people find more appealing, certainly more romantic, than the slick and sleek look of modern design.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #274e13;">2. What attracted you to this era and creating a steampunk comic? I adored H. G. Wells growing up and was so excited about <span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489174796780_8905">The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comic and movie when they were released? Do you have classics or modern influences or both?</span></span></b><br />
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I initially contemplated doing a steampunk comic while attending Dragon Con in Atlanta. I'd seen steampunk cosplayers and such before but I'd never really noticed it, it was just background noise. But at Dragon Con I took note and was very inspired by the steampunk community. I have both classic and modern influences. H.G. Wells is actually a very heavy influence on Lady Mechanika, you can't do Victorian sci-fi without thinking of Wells or Verne. In fact, I sometimes like to do a little tip of the hat to them when I can.<br />
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<span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489174796780_9344" style="color: #274e13;"><b>3. Is Lady Mechanika based on anyone? Did you give her certain traits or attributes because she was meant to be a reminder of anyone? Inspired by anyone, fictional or real-life?</b></span><br />
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At first I imagined her kind of like Selene from Underworld, bad-ass with a lot of attitude. On the outside she can seem cold and unemotional and stand-offish, but that's the protective shell hiding her soft and vulnerable insides. One of the initial concepts I had was a vampire hunter type character. As time went on I started altering her more, making the stories more like sherlock holmes and tomb raider. It may not be very original, but I gave her amnesia like Bourne or Wolverine, so that as she searches for her missing past we as the reader can discover it along with her. That's the central question to the series, how did someone in that time period become enhanced with cybernetic limbs that are much more advanced than anything else, even in that fictional steampunk world. Costume-wise I was influenced by steampunk model and fashion designer Kato, who had a kind of gothic take on steampunk and I wanted to infuse that, come up with my own version of that. <br />
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<b><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">QUICK ANSWER:</span></b><br />
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<li><span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489332447517_11421" style="font-weight: bold;"><b><i><span style="color: #274e13;">What is your favorite Con to attend and why?</span> </i></b></span><span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489332447517_11422">Probably Dragon Con, primarily because it's not a comic book show, there are so many different types of vendors there.</span></li>
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<li><span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489332447517_11514"><b><i><span style="color: #274e13;">What is your favorite Graphic Novel and why?</span> </i></b></span><span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489332447517_11617"><i>The Killing Joke</i>, because I like the story and I like Brian Bolland, he's one of my favorite artists.</span></li>
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<li><b><i><span style="color: #274e13;">What is your favorite Show right now and why?</span> </i></b><span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489332447517_12505">Probably <i>Game of Thrones</i>, it's well crafted and fun to watch! </span></li>
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<li><b><i><span style="color: #274e13;">What music do you listen to while illustrating/creating?</span> </i></b><span id="m_1063987150102231321yiv5395604555yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1489332447517_11779">Usually <i>Liquid Mind</i> radio on Pandora because it quiets my head, but lately I've also been listening to <i>Massive Attack</i>, trip rock.</span></li>
</ul>
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<b><a href="http://www.joebenitez.com/">WEBSITE</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/54938.Joe_Ben_tez">GOODREADS</a> | <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Lady-Mechanika-Steampunk-Coloring-Book/dp/0996603034">AMAZON</a> </b></div>
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<span class="im" style="color: #500050; font-family: "helveticaneue" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"></span><span class="im" style="color: #500050; font-family: "helveticaneue" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"></span><span class="im" style="color: #500050; font-family: "helveticaneue" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"></span><span class="im" style="color: #500050; font-family: "helveticaneue" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"></span><span class="im" style="color: #500050; font-family: "helveticaneue" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"></span><span class="im" style="color: #500050; font-family: "helveticaneue" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"></span>perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-49619612465028894272017-03-07T12:07:00.003-05:002017-03-07T12:07:39.315-05:00Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Illustrated Cover RevealedIf you haven't had the chance to see it... <b>Perpetual New Girls</b> are gaping over this cover of the <i>The Illustrated Edition of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.</i><br />
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Not sure if we like it or not, actually.<br />
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What about you all? Yay or Nay?<br />
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<a href="https://www.pottermore.com/news/exclusive-first-look-inside-the-prisoner-of-azkaban-illustrated-edition">Pottermore</a> unveiled the cover along with some inside illustrations that look more like what we expect from illustrator, Jim Kay. We do adore the Knight Bus though. Maybe once we get to see it in person, it will seem more impressive.</div>
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This third book in the illustrated set will find its way into stores on October 3rd of this year and will feature over 115 new graphic illustrations and be translated into over 21 languages around the world! </div>
<br />Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-25517586782773355352017-02-28T07:00:00.000-05:002017-03-24T22:25:22.265-04:00BLOG TOUR: Author Interview with Carrie Mac <div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">Perpetual New Girls are delighted to host Carrie Mac today! Especially since TODAY is the day you can get her newest novel and US debut, <i>10 Things I Can See From Here.</i></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">Maeve comes across just like us here. We're an anxious bunch at this blog and related one-to-one with many of the feelings Mac's character unleashes in her search to be accepted. Such an amazing, diverse character who truly captures how uniquely expressive a rambling, anxious mind can be.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">And oh the quirks! While we're fans of the variations of "Keep Calm", we get what drives Maeve's contempt of them. We are definite haters of the "Just Chill" quips. There's way too much meaning behind someone saying that to us for us to be "chill" with them. And I suppose that's why we were curious as to what drove Maeve's dislike of the "Keep Calm" sayings. Was it something Mac had given her character or something she herself felt and wrote into Maeve's story to make her unique?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: purple; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><b>We read that the cover started as a
rift on the Keep Calm sayings and given Maeve's propensity to dislike them...
is that based in reality? How do you feel about the Keep Calm and Carry On
variants? Which one is your favorite? (We're partial to the Keep Calm and Have
a Cupcake.)</b></i></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I
love the original. And only the original. That hasn’t always been the case,
though. At first I thought the variations on the theme were pretty funny, but
then the idea was gnawed to the quick and now the bazillion different versions
irk me as much as they irk Maeve. I love the history behind the original, and
how it was such a simple message, and even simpler design, meant to be applied
to the very real human horror that is war. Now it’s no better than the overused
and beat-up <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">it is what it is</i> saying<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">. </i>Both sayings are simple and true, and
both of them have been flattened beyond all applicable recognition.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: purple; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><b>How do you put a character's life
into perspective when you begin to write them? Do you do psychological
analyses? What is your favorite way to mold their psyche, their voice as you go
along? Do you do character outlines?</b></i></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica"; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16.0pt;">I am constantly shopping for characters. On the bus, at the
park, in the grocery store – absolutely everywhere. The idea for a character
comes along with the nubbin of the story, and so I build the character from
that moment when I know the story is big enough to float a fully-realized
character. At that point I dig into the personality and mind-set. What do they
want? What do they love? Who do they love? What are they afraid of? What is at
stake in this story? Why will we like them enough to read an entire book about
them? What are their flaws?<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>After
that I move on to the nuts and bolts of assigning them a personality from the
collection of bits and bobs that I amass out in the world. The bus, the store,
etc. What do they look like? What mannerisms set them apart from everyone else?
How are they different from the people in their community? How are they the
same? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Lastly,
I struggle to give them a name. I have named thousands of characters over the
years, and I cannot re-use a name, and now that I’ve used up all my favorite
names, I truly have to look beyond my own head for this one. I collect names
from the same places that I collect character traits, and also from author
appearances too. When I sign books and am writing someone’s name, I ask if I
can steal it and put it on my name list. So, I shop from there, and that
usually works. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Once
my character is named, then they come to life. This whole character-building
process sounds like it would take a long time, but this happens quickly,
perhaps over a few days. Once the character is as whole as they can be before a
full first draft, I start writing. I get to know them better as I write, because
who they truly are can only be solidified as the story takes shape. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: purple; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>You also work as an illustrator. How
does this talent, if any, of being a working artist hinder/help your
writerly development?</i></b></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica"; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16.0pt;">Sadly, my eyeballs don’t work very well anymore, and so I’m
not doing as much illustration as I’d like. I still do custom illustrations of
children’s favorite toys or stuffed animals, but not often. I do still draw and
sketch for myself, and that does help my writing process in that it is another
way to interpret the world and integrate images or feelings into the story that
I’m working on.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">Self-deprecating, nuanced, and real, <b>10 THINGS I CAN SEE FROM HERE </b>(Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers | on sale <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1994381502" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: dashed; border-bottom-width: 1px; position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">February 28, 2017</span></span> | Ages 14 and up | $17.99) by award-winning author <b>Carrie Mac </b>explores the complexities of mental illness with wit, honesty, and sincerity. At once both profound and humorous, this coming of age novel deftly explores anxiety and falling in love for the first time.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">Think positive. Don't worry, be happy. Keep calm and carry on. Maeve has heard it all before. She's been struggling with severe anxiety for a long time and as much as she wishes it was something she could just talk herself out of, it's not. When Maeve is sent to Vancouver to live with her dad, her very pregnant stepmom, and her twin six-year-old half brothers, she struggles to rise to the challenge.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">Vancouver brings a wide array of new worries, but Maeve finds brief respites—as well as even more worries—in Salix, a local girl who doesn't seem to worry about anything. Though the summer brings more catastrophes than even Maeve could ever have foreseen, she is able to reach inside herself to find the courage to be there for the ones she loves.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #d60093; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">With an exciting love story, and a raw, emotional core, </span></b><b><span style="color: #d60093; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">10 THINGS I CAN SEE FROM HERE</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #d60093; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">is a poingant and uplifting novel perfect for fans of Rainbow Rowell and Sophie Kinsella</span></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">CARRIE MAC </span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">is an award-winning Canadian novelist making her US debut. She lives in East Vancouver, where this story takes place. Check out her website at </span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&q=http://www.carriemac.com&source=gmail&ust=1488339672591000&usg=AFQjCNFw2WRr2eyMFPxK7xvXUyf00S1_dw" href="http://www.carriemac.com/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank"><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-decoration: none;">www.carriemac.com</span></a><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> and follow her on twitter at </span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">@CarrieMacWrites.</span></span><br />
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<b><span style="background-color: white; color: #d60093; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: large;">10 Things I Can See From Here</span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="background-color: white;">by Carrie Mac</span><span style="background-color: #6aa84f;"><u></u><u></u></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">"With Maeve, Mac delivers a character who's </span><b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">heartwarmingly real and sympathetic</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">, and her story provides a </span><b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">much needed mirror for anxious queer girls everywhere</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">."—<i>Kirkus</i>, Starred review<br /><br />"This is a </span><b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">good companion</span></b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">book for other anxiety-riddled stories, such as <i>The Shattering</i> by Karen Healey, and <i>Finding Audrey</i> by Sophie Kinsella."—<i>Booklist</i></span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">"Mac is </span><b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">good at showing</span></b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">how a dread-filled mind works... [An] </span><b><span style="color: #c45911; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">affecting story</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;">.''—<i>Publishers Weekly</i></span><b><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: "calibri light" , sans-serif;"><u></u><u></u></span></b></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-54041098255486715322017-02-06T12:02:00.000-05:002017-02-06T12:03:49.011-05:00Pre-order THE PECULIAR INCIDENT ON SHADY STREET and Own Artsy Perpetual Girl FanartRamblings of the Perpetual New Girl sort of started haphazardly since well... as the Mother of a Perpetual New Girl and who blogged for a variety of places already and really could not commit to yet another place needing reviews; it seemed a futile task to have my own blog without help. However, the Oldest of my children wanted a place where she could dictate to me her strongly felt views on certain books. So here I am... doing just that!<br />
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Right now... she wants me to talk about this book!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYLfaq2xg5TIYohoFfmNEZsmKXwEuXb3Mbj1On0pliQ1DfL4XG9M7x69qMXUCoy2_8pi7X5kGFY_1GjFlS2k7zRc2TDSGIVcpzYFLfiVNkR7gX8IvcKSMmYCt9fE7Z2lsYnSS5rsPNWz39/s1600/peculiar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYLfaq2xg5TIYohoFfmNEZsmKXwEuXb3Mbj1On0pliQ1DfL4XG9M7x69qMXUCoy2_8pi7X5kGFY_1GjFlS2k7zRc2TDSGIVcpzYFLfiVNkR7gX8IvcKSMmYCt9fE7Z2lsYnSS5rsPNWz39/s640/peculiar.jpg" width="418" /></a></div>
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And because the Oldest wandered into a project of epic proportions! She created fanart for Lindsay Currie's - a favorite of ours if you had not noticed - latest novel, THE PECULIAR INCIDENT ON SHADY STREET. This new middle grade mystery-ghost story comes out this October, just in time for Halloween. And with every <a href="https://www.lindsaycurrie.com/pre-order-giveaway">pre-order</a>, you can now own a slice of Perpetual New Girl -- Gabrielle's artwork.<br />
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<a href="https://www.lindsaycurrie.com/pre-order-giveaway"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibIPPNZxvxPyHy5TLpeKdenZIu64oMSNkt_VH5EJ-y2HKRg-05ORVYenviaq9uEU8SR9C2Fa5VW4ZxW0sZjof2riMMj54VTKvdfmwJgeQnSWWlUpUzPlhPBOgX4YcnKEbVreyU03XtKnwb/s400/peculiargabyart.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Not only is Currie offering the artsy pre-order pack, one lucky winner gets a whole lot more! Seriously, the goodies you are entered to win by pre-ordering this book is off the charts amazing. Teachers, especially need to <a href="https://www.lindsaycurrie.com/pre-order-giveaway">check it out</a>.</div>
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<a href="https://www.lindsaycurrie.com/pre-order-giveaway"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWO02E_Fqy3GY0mrfJSqVuhUunJ_td9ffQvgyN18KPConRwGdIgLwoqp7wS3WhpY3iHKF3a-aXuoH6Jv-sl1AdTdfgYA_X6DWR8We4VWAefb3e5BseLutuiB_N2yNVGCaW7kLlqdNwhyphenhyphennE/s400/peculiarcontest.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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If that isn't enough enticement to convince you to head on over to Lindsay Currie's site, then go on over to <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/221196-the-peculiar-incident-on-shady-street">Goodreads</a> since they're giving away a copy of the book, and you only have until March 1st to enter.</div>
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<br />perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-10199394491061092072017-02-01T12:57:00.003-05:002017-02-01T12:59:14.567-05:00NEW 'Heavy Influence' Novella "RHYTHM" for Pre-order <div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pre-order your copy of #WeddingDreams today, featuring over 20 authors and 3000 pages.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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You are invited...:</h5>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>**You are invited to the weddings of your dreams**</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Twenty award-winning, USA Today and International best-selling authors have come together to bring you over 3,000 pages of love, lust, and lusciously sexy men.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From sweet second chance romances to bad boys, BBWs, and brides looking for revenge, this is a perfect read for anyone who enjoys Romance or Women’s Fiction. These pages are packed with cozy romances, thrilling international and holiday adventures, and sweet heart-melting stories. Our authors bring you everything from hot cowboys to rockstar romances, elegant weddings to nuptial disasters, and blushing brides to bold women, all in a delightful celebration of love.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You’re in for a wild, passionate ride on a breathtaking voyage to make your heart soar. This box set will leave you craving all things marital and wishing the honeymoon would never end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Heat level: sweet to sensual<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Pre-Order Now:</h5>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://amzn.to/2jNXJqm">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://bit.ly/2kH1rD4">KOBO</a> | <a href="http://apple.co/2jvPcrn">iBooks</a> | <a href="http://bit.ly/2kL4ptH">Google Books</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wed..." target="_blank">NOOK</a></span></blockquote>
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Featuring:</h5>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jLZlTWuTJgU/WJFPIs9TowI/AAAAAAAATss/jwEq5xkse6UmF7tl-
WF2qzMXXlQ05hzxwCLcB/s1600/RhythmCoverEbook%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSrhbahjqVzYdecgiF33eOGCjJTeTvwHxmo9nXH4qmZ3EDhG8hNoEY3NKW0llgS-KBY6B4jm0UYNhn-7rs-vc27JuOFWt8Pl3yykk7CuDCHJmBJgSlRKYhDYJLX7QBWqmDkGiXKkPEe2Ck/s640/RhythmCoverEbook+%25282%2529.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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Rhythm by Ann Marie Frohoff:</h5>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Grace Soloman’s life was just finding a new normal. As a single parent, there was little time for distractions - let alone dating. When a wedding invitation turns into a second chance meeting with a former lover, sparks ignite a fire. Kai Burton’s life was all about finding the rhythm as a drummer and it brought him fame and fortune – but his past has been tethered in heartbreak. Grace was the one that got away, and his determination to get her back brings an unforeseen crisis. Who knew memory lane could mean life or death?</span> </blockquote>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32735772-rhythm" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcI0A8u3AeBVsJE59eohypY5VqKxLe_-4KYKk-XyGNY3CwFubwsI_QC_4Eh-HS7mBIoqR5auJQohBxAK5o6D45dLAJswDFL7R7dVP33FLQ1Zza93Yb-lmLv5FAhBPTiYcabYSWu38RDnYR/s1600/AddtoGoodreads.png" /></a></div>
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</div>Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-17808488315303477782017-01-17T11:08:00.000-05:002017-01-17T11:09:45.188-05:00COVER REVEAL: Mischief & Magnolias (Novella) by Kristi Cook<br style="color: #444444; font-family: 'Century Gothic', CenturyGothic, AppleGothic, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" />
Sexy longing couldn't be passed down generations and generations, could it? If Ryder Marsden and Jemma Cafferty are to be believed... a sure obsession with not liking each other could. So what is it about destiny and fate, that makes these two want to just fight back... against it and love? Hmmm...<br />
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You might have met these two legacy heirs in <i>Magnolia</i> by Kristi Cook. Remember? If not, you need to grab this novel too. You're going to want to have the whole story, right?!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieYGrvzlChiyM-3C3iTyoL88RnyPhx8KVHohIV8q1fVWyFGQax2F0C8kwo1OO7TgVWb1t5s9FGo-usp3hGpBngoCUkL_IRlWEv13AKIaHKYP_2sy6t4ZmZyBA9ksWREkFEblcK0pQlkRc/s1600/mag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieYGrvzlChiyM-3C3iTyoL88RnyPhx8KVHohIV8q1fVWyFGQax2F0C8kwo1OO7TgVWb1t5s9FGo-usp3hGpBngoCUkL_IRlWEv13AKIaHKYP_2sy6t4ZmZyBA9ksWREkFEblcK0pQlkRc/s400/mag.jpg" width="265" /></a> </div>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "noto serif" , serif; font-size: 17px;">In Magnolia Branch, Mississippi, the Cafferty and Marsden families are southern royalty. Neighbors since the Civil War, the families have shared vacations, holidays, backyard barbecues, and the overwhelming desire to unite their two clans by marriage. So when a baby boy and girl were born to the families at the same time, the perfect opportunity seemed to have finally arrived.</span> </span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "noto serif" , serif; font-size: 17px;">Jemma Cafferty and Ryder Marsden have no intention of giving in to their parents’ wishes. They’re only seventeen, for goodness’ sake, not to mention that one little problem: They hate each other! Jemma can’t stand Ryder’s nauseating golden-boy persona, and Ryder would like nothing better than to pretend stubborn Jemma doesn’t exist.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "noto serif" , serif; font-size: 17px;">But when a violent storm ravages Magnolia Branch, it unearths Jemma’s and Ryder’s true feelings for each other as the two discover that the line between love and hate may be thin enough to risk crossing over.</span></blockquote>
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Oh yeah... how much longing can you pack in one synopsis?! A lot, apparently and can date it back to the Civil War. Question is... with all those expectations on Jemma and Ryder, can they last? That's where today's cover reveal comes in. You all, check out this beauty!<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">When can you buy it?! February 7th 2017</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">You know you wanna read it: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32502775-mischief-and-magnolias?from_search=true" style="color: #ff4f00; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">GoodReads</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When Ryder Marsden and Jemma Cafferty return to Magnolia Branch for Christmas break following their first semester at their respective universities in New York City (Columbia and NYU), their secret relationship is revealed—they’re literally caught under the mistletoe, kissing. Unexpectedly, their parents—who’ve spent their entire lives pushing them together—are somehow less than thrilled, especially when they realize the depth of their deception.<br /><br />Tensions mount as the Marsden and Cafferty families struggle to come to terms with Jemma’s and Ryder’s feelings for each other, especially as they prepare to send them back to New York City together. At the same time, Jemma and Ryder must face their own problems that have arisen as a result of attending different schools—there are jealousies to be sorted out and hurt feelings to mend if their relationship is going to stand the test of time.<br /><br />Will their love last, or are they star-crossed lovers, after all?</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><span style="color: purple;">SNEAK PEEK</span><span style="color: #444444;"> </span><span style="color: purple;">at this adorable couple's shenanigans:</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> Laura Grace nods and turns toward Ryder and me. “You two kids try and play nice for a little bit. Dinner’s in fifteen minutes—get yourselves cleaned up and to the dining room by then, okay?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> “Got it,” Ryder murmurs.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> And off they go, leaving us totally and blissfully alone. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> Ryder sidles up beside me. “So, last night was nice,” he says, his breath warm against my ear.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> Shivers race down my spine. “Yes, it was.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> “Think you can sneak out again tonight?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> “Probably. You know my parents—always in bed by ten.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> He runs a hand through his dark hair, leaving it sticking up in all directions. “How am I going to last until then? Sitting at the dinner table across from the prettiest girl in the world and not allowed to touch her?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> “Well, would you look at that…” I tip my head toward the doorway, where a sprig of mistletoe is conveniently hanging. “Should we risk it? Maybe if we’re really quick?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">His dark eyes spark with mischief, and I grab his hand and dash toward the door, dragging him with me as I position myself directly under the waxy green leaves.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> “You sure like to live dangerously, Jemma Cafferty,” he says, wrapping his arms around me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I rise up on tiptoe, my head tipped back as I gaze up at him adoringly. “Shut up and kiss me, Ryder Marsden.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> His kiss is gentle at first—almost tentative. But then…it’s like the room falls away and there’s nothing left, nothing but me and Ryder and this kiss that literally steals away my breath and turns my knees to Jell-O and my brain to mush.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> And that’s pretty much when all hell breaks loose. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span>~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~<br />
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<span style="font-size: large; text-align: center;"><span style="color: purple; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px;">New York Times bestselling YA author Kristi Cook is a transplanted southern gal who lives in New York City with her husband and two kids. Her YA debut, HAVEN, was released in Feb. 2011 by Simon Pulse. The last two volumes in the Winterhaven series, MIRAGE and ETERNAL, followed in 2012 and 2013. Her first contemporary, southern-set YA, MAGNOLIA, was released in 2014. She's currently working on a contemporary YA with paranormal elements set in Savannah, GA.</span><br />
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Kristi also writes adult romantic fiction as Kristina Cook and Kristi Astor.</blockquote>
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<b><span style="color: purple; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Other YA novels by Kristi Cook...</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To Find Out More of Kristi Cook...</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://www.kristicook.net/" style="color: #ff4f00; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Website</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/Kristi_Cook" style="color: #ff4f00; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3169806.Kristi_Cook" style="color: #ff4f00; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">GoodReads</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKristiCook/?fref=nf" style="color: #ff4f00; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Facebook</a> </span></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-50598466397018318792016-10-25T16:21:00.000-04:002016-10-25T16:35:40.404-04:00LOVE AMPLIFIED *~Release Day~* Giveaway<br />
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<i><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><b>LOVE AMPLIFIED</b></span></i> comes out today! You can get it now. Woohoo... go purchase it and come back here to enter the giveaway. Also, watch some exclusive content with a very handsome Jake Masters and the face on that front cover below. Read an exclusive excerpt if you need a reintroduction to Alyssa, the leading lady of the <i>Heavy Influence</i> series too.<br />
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Happy Release Day:</span></h5>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt;"><i>Love Amplified</i> (Heavy Influence, #3)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt;">By: Ann Marie Frohoff<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt;">Publisher AMF Publishing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt;">Release Date: October 25, 2016<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt;">Pages: 176<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jake Masters is on the rise, sober and inspired. His solo music career has taken off and he's packed away his ugly skeletons - so he thought.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When a tropical rendezvous with Alyssa turns into an unexpected life-altering reunion, they must decide what's more important - their happily ever after or doing the right thing.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">Can it be both?</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17451033-love-amplified" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0n3Uc2NMSEiGOI0VJsxatW0Axpzqyr-R4WI9FlioftfMrWIbYAIRcoIRwtohIWi6x-ScrrqYLOE6UwYqHQ7-9wfRtPRvUqJ77I5imfmMnw2mDUIjx2IJ7VVoNLwZWD3elai6cfTkFqWP/s1600/add+to+goodreads.png" /></a></div>
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TODAY ONLY... for RELEASE DAY... Get LOVE AMPLIFIED for 99 cents!</span></h5>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 30.6667px;"><b><a href="http://amzn.to/2eGNaUK" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;">Amazon</span></a><span style="color: #17365d;"> | </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17451033-love-amplified" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;">Goodreads</span></a></b></span></blockquote>
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Exclusive Excerpt:</h5>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;"><b>Alyssa</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are things you can’t un-see…things that remain like thick burn scars,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">always there to remind you of a fire you couldn’t run away from. Living in the same town </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">as my rock star ex-boyfriend was one of them. Jake Masters, the love of my life and the </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">torment of my existence had moved back from New York City, unexpectedly, and I had </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">spotted him in the most unbelievable way.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Standing in the middle of the Manhattan Beach Pier the ocean waves crashed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">against the pier piling, matching the pounding of my heart. My emotions churned like the </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">blue water bubbling beneath me. I felt the heat of emotion rising up my neck. I kept </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">blinking, not believing what I was seeing. I looked back at Nathan, who’d always been </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">there for me during my darkest of days with Jake in high school. My friend Nathan, who </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">became my boyfriend, back to friend, then turned fiancé. He was talking on his cell </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">phone. He’d answered a call from his hospital intern program, stalling our all too serious </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">marriage conversation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Waiting for him to get off the phone I had leaned against the pier’s railing,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">looking out over the sand. It was a warm spring Monday afternoon and there were more </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">people on the beach than usual, too many kids ran around at the shoreline and I thought it </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">must have been a school holiday.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That’s when I saw him – Jake. My hands trembled instantly and my legs grew<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">wobbly. I took in a deep breath to get a hold of myself. His shirtless back faced me. There </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">was no mistaking him. The tattoo dedicated to me, angled over his left bicep and down </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">his shoulder blade, taunted me. It was as if it were alive, its strands of hair waving back </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">and forth as he dug in the sand next to a little boy and a woman with long black hair. I </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">could see them clearly as I stood above them on the pier. They were building a sand </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">castle. I turned away unable to believe it. I leaned my back against the railing, watching </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">Nathan as he slowly walked toward me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My handsome Nathan…maybe not mine anymore. I didn’t deserve him. I never<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">did. This was a sign. My heart would always belong to Jake. No man deserves a woman </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">who would always pine for someone else.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What was I seeing?<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I didn’t want to turn back to get another glimpse, but I had no control. I casually<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">glanced over my shoulder. Now I could hear their laughter as if they were the only ones </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">on the beach and it shredded me to my core. Nathan finally made it to my side and I </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">watched him as he rubbed his jaw, despondent. He’d flown in that morning, just to see </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">me and to give me an ultimatum.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Alyssa if we’re not gonna set a date this has to end…” - that’s what he’d said<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">right before his phone rang. I still couldn’t believe he took the call, maybe because he </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">wanted me to suffer. I’d dragged our engagement out long enough. I looked back over </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">my shoulder again. Seeing Jake play happy family made my stomach turn.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Who were they? That’s probably his new girlfriend – I thought, wondering whom<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">the kid was. Would Jake date someone with a kid? – Obviously. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">I felt the life rush out of me like the air in a punctured balloon as memories </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">flooded through my mind, lingering on the things that caused our complete and final </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">breakup. What the hell did I expect? Of course he’d move on with his life. I ended it so </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">harshly and heartlessly, but he deserved my cold shoulder. He’d been sleeping with his </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">deceased best friend’s wife, more than once. He was on drugs and not the person I </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I remembered the pain and hurt in Jake’s eyes </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">when I threw the ring he’d given me, our promise of forever, in his face as if it happened </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">yesterday.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">grabbing him by the arm leading him away. I didn’t want him to see what and whom I </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">was staring at. His face was still serious and his green eyes more somber. I knew the end </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">was near, but not in the way I’d expected.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Everything ok, with work?” I linked my arm through his. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">He sighed and pulled away from me. “Aly, what’s it gonna be?” </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">I stopped to face him. “You want an answer now?” </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">“Alyssa, you’re graduating. I…” He hung his head and my heartbeat was in my </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">ears. “I met someone, Alyssa, and I’m interested in taking her out. If you’re not going to </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">marry me…we both need to move on with our lives.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The ringing in my ears made me dizzy. I watched Nathan’s face as he eagerly<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">looked at me for a response and all I kept hearing in my mind was – “…I met<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">someone…” </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">“Nathan,” I crossed my arms, trying to figure out how I was feeling. I was both </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">hurt and not surprised. “What you’re saying doesn’t make sense…” </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">“Yes, it does…it came out wrong, Alyssa, I love you.” He was flustered and it </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">made me feel worse about everything. “It’s about you not wanting to commit to a life </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">with me...” he gulped, searching my eyes, “and I met someone in my program. I spend a</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">lot of time with her. She enjoys my company…and she made a comment that if I wasn’t </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">engaged, she’d ask me out. It was a simple, flirtatious comment, yes, but it got me to </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">thinking…since you won’t commit to a wedding date.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sadness and guilt gutted me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Nathan you knew…” </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">“I know.” He interrupted, frustrated. “I’ve grown tired of hoping you’ll come </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">around, Alyssa. I’m ready to start my life with someone. I know we’re young but I wanna </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">build a life with someone from nothing and I wanted that to be you.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">Alyssa. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">He never calls me Alyssa.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“You don’t even wear the ring I gave you.” He continued. “I should have known<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">when you stopped wearing it.” His arms flew up in indignation. “I want you to be happy. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">I want to be happy. I thought I could be something better in your life. I thought I could </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">show you the love you deserve, show you how a man is supposed to treat a woman.” </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">“Nathan, if this is about Jake…”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“That’s part of it.” He said loudly, drawing a bit of attention to us. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">“I wouldn’t marry him either.” I practically shouted, blurting out more than I </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">wanted, “he asked me several times, too.” I felt heavy like I could collapse from </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">emotional weight.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He looked confused. I’d never shared this information with him.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Really.” He laughed to himself, almost mockingly. He turned away and his arms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">flew out again as he paced back to me sarcastically saying, “I suppose that makes me feel </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">slightly better.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This was a side of Nathan I’d not seen before and I ignored his biting contention,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> “I’m just fucked up, what can I say.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 19.9333px;">Ann Marie ("Annie") Frohoff grew up in sunny Southern California. As a teen and young adult, she spent her time frequenting and living in nearly every beachside city up and down the coast.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 19.9333px;">Ann Marie is a debut author whose vision to tell a story started out like many other aspiring writers, with a dream, literally. After taking her then eight-year-old daughter to a concert, her dream weaving took on a life of its own. Long story short, she quit her high- paying corporate job and went for broke to follow her dream.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 19.9333px;">The first installment in her Heavy Influence Trilogy, FIRST KISS, released June 11, 2013 — the series is a story about young, reckless love between a rising rock star and his younger muse, spanning 10 years of their tumultuous and passionate relationship. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 19.9333px;">Each book in the Trilogy will come with a soundtrack of original music, of which the lyrics will appear in the pages of the books.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13pt; line-height: 19.9333px;">Annie has settled in the South Bay area of Los Angeles with her family.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://amfrohoff.com/"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">Website</span></a><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;"> | </span><a href="https://twitter.com/frohoffwrites"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;"> | </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/heavyinfluence"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">Facebook </span></a><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">| </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/frohoffwrites/"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">Instagram</span></a><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;"> | </span><a href="http://amfrohoff.com/"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">Mailing List</span></a><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;"> | </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/annmariefrohoff"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">YouTube</span></a><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;"> | </span><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5211881.Ann_Marie_Frohoff"><span style="color: #17365d; mso-themecolor: text2; mso-themeshade: 191;">Goodreads</span></a></span></blockquote>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-77479083291379852622016-10-25T10:07:00.000-04:002016-10-25T10:18:35.156-04:00Ann Marie Frohoff Talks Musical Inspiration of "Heavy Influences" Book Series<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
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If you don’t remember the first stories of the <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Heavy Influence</em> series, the scoop on all the books and where you can find them is <a href="http://perpetualnewgirl.blogspot.com/2016/09/love-amplified-by-ann-marie-frohoff-is.html">HERE</a>. The worry I believe most readers right now seem to be having is will we get that happy ending?! Life doesn't come with cut and dry answers, so why should romance? Because that's what readers are seeking out from such stories. Frohoff might be a big fan of open-ended; however, she has promised that the <i>Heavy Influence</i> series will end in a way that readers can walk away ... Happy!<br />
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #ff99cc;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">I like the quote that love is not always enough… however, there are many people who believe love conquers all. Spoilers possibly but which do you think Jake and Aly are headed towards — heartbreak or a happy ending? </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #ef2673; font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;">Haha…hmmmm. I’m not a happy ending kind of person. I love stories that leave things open ended and force you to conclude for yourself. I know most people hate that…so I’m not going to do that to my readers. It’s going to be a happy ending, but not the type of happy ending that would be considered sailing off into the sunset. Life has a way of coming full circle. Jake is a product of his up bringing after all.</span></div>
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Now that I would believe, especially since the cliffhanger you’ve left us on the last few books meant an exhaustive amount of angsting until the final book! So since you’ve given me all the spoilers you can because really... we all just need to pick up LOVE AMPLIFIED right now; let’s talk muses. Hmmm?! You’ve got some really lovely bands to feed your inspiration, don’t you?!</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #ff99cc;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Do you have new musical muses for this series? Or are the Bad Suns and Lights Resolve still the heaviest influences? Do they know you have another book coming out?</span></span></div>
<span style="color: #ef2673; font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; text-align: center;">Bad Suns is still a huge influence, as they are now hitting the big with playing Coachella Music Festival this year, and have appeared on Conan O’Brien and now are slated to appear on Jimmy Kimmel this month (Jan 2015). Nick Long of Dark Waves is also a huge influence. He also is on tour this month – he has some really heavy stories… more so than the other bands. He’s actually lived my character’s, Jake’s life, much like what happens in the series. Bad Suns is a little too young and hopefully won’t have issues so common with celebrity & fame. I’m sure they do know I have more books coming out with regards to the series, but I don’t speak to them about the books per say. I do ask a million questions and we hang out, but I keep all my book stuff separate, if that makes sense. Kinda silly I know, but it is what it is.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #ff99cc;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">What music are you listening to right now? Do you pick songs that motivate you to write your characters’ lives a certain way, to feel what they’re feeling? </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #ef2673; font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; text-align: center;">I’m currently listening Arctic Monkeys, Taylor Swift (don’t laugh I adore her – she keeps me young), Twenty One Pilots, The XX – I really listen to old school tunes though… 80’s & 90’s classics.</span></div>
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Hey now, no judging for sure here… Taylor Swift is AWESOME! And I could totally see Aly dancing around to her music. She might be a California girl but Taylor’s got the right grooves to help her shake it off… and that’s the thing, isn’t it?! When you’re young, it is hard to let go of those passionate feelings that you feel for your first love. I just think that Aly and Jake need to take some time to grow and deal with their own issues though because while Jake seems to handle life better with Aly, she’s become a crutch he relies on too heavily and in retaliation, Aly acts selfishly and without thought to anyone but herself. It’s a catch-22 that they cannot seem to break the hateful cycle of.</div>
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And sometimes the angst gets overwhelming, at least it did for me, considering that I think of these books as romances first and foremost. My spirit felt overwhelmed by sadness and hurt for these two and it threw me off so much that the steamy parts of the story just didn’t ring as true. I wanted to root for them, but mostly it’s watching a train wreck knowing it is going to happen and not being able to stop it. It’s awful and yet, I will admit the book had me feeling ALL the FEELS at the end. So Annie got me there!</div>
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Seriously, this is not your average love story. It’s hard-core rock with attitude and angst and alternative in its perspective. You cannot expect things to all of a sudden look up. The pain gets real, but in the end, Jake and Alyssa always seem to know deep down that they will always love each other. *cue Whitney’s rendition of “I Will Always Love You”*</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5211881.Ann_Marie_Frohoff" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/annmariefrohoff" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Facebook</a> ~ <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ann-Marie-Frohoff/e/B00BU8RDFQ/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1?tag=viglink27887-20" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Amazon </a>~ <a href="https://twitter.com/rockinwriterchk" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="http://annmariefrohoff.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a></div>
perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-2793313696421891652016-10-07T17:30:00.000-04:002016-10-07T17:30:05.268-04:00Beth Revis Expands Her Galactic Empire In a Galaxy Far, Far Away<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
Some people write and write and the words they write come out fantastical. As if they’ve actually been transported to the place and time of their choice and come back as primary sources — eyewitnesses with first hand accounts of these new universes and the heroes that inhabit them — and they are the story-tellers of the future because of it. Archivists of fantasy and escapism and the brilliant spark of imagination that powers publishing today.</div>
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<a href="http://bethrevis.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Beth Revis</span></a><span style="color: #545353;"> is one such powerhouse talent. She plots stories with checkmate endings, the type where you cannot safely predict if the lead character will indeed make it but you sure as heck hope so. The balance of power tips too often for surety though. If perchance, you’re the type of reader to care, immersing yourself in books without sparing a thought of the genius behind it; prepare to come out scathed to the core. Your insides exposed, scorched and tears streaking your cheeks. It won’t be a pretty sight, but you will survive to read another day. You won’t have a choice; you’ll need to know what happens next.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #545353;">All the more impressive, for me, is that Revis does all this and manages an “omigosh” romantic thread while remaining in the Science Fiction arena. It isn’t easy being a girl sci-fi geek. Female characters who are leaders of the pack aren’t easy to come by, especially in this genre </span><a href="http://torbooks.co.uk/2013/07/10/sexism-in-genre-publishing-a-publishers-perspective/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);"><span style="color: #0b5394;">thought to be</span></a><span style="color: #545353;"> mostly written by males. Times are a changing and it pleases me to no end that more and more authors are saying they write what they wanted to read, and it just so happened that a lot of other people wanted to read the same thing too — it just had not been written yet.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #545353;">Now if all the above were not enough to make me feel a kinship with Revis, and the fact we share the same name, the revelation that </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; line-height: inherit;">Firefly</em><span style="color: #545353;"> is her favorite show closely followed by </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; line-height: inherit;">Doctor Who</em><span style="color: #545353;"> certainly makes her a kindred spirit. Apparently she is in a race with her own mother to visit all the states and countries and since travel ranks high up on her favorite things to do (as well as mine!)… well that’s just the icing on the awesomeness cake I need to give this lady. Seriously, check out her </span><a href="http://bethrevis.com/bio/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);"><span style="color: #0b5394;">blog</span></a><span style="color: #545353;"> for all the “boring” details. You’ll thank me later… and yes, </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; line-height: inherit;">Gargoyles</em><span style="color: #545353;"> was so underrated during its time!</span></div>
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The good thing though, after reading my spiel, you don’t have to just take my word for it. Okay… so Revis has double-jointed shoulders which I imagine should make bearing the weight of all the expectations I’ve just placed upon them easier but maybe not since this weight comes with a heavy dose of metaphorically speaking. However, that is why we’ve got an exclusive today for you. The one and only Beth Revis tells us all about publishing as she knows it and what it took (thousands of rejections) to get her own books in bookstores and on readers’ bookshelves. (See! I told ya she was tough.)</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">When submitting <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Across the Universe</em> you said you thankfully found an agent who was able to find the right publisher for you. Were you ever encouraged by a genre editor to submit a sci-fi novel to them and do you plan on sticking with science fiction or branching out? You mention having ten finished manuscripts before you even got around to <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Across the Universe</em> and most of them very different than the sci-fi genre you ended up in.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">I’m not sure what you mean by genre editor? Do you mean, for example, an editor who takes unsolicited manuscripts? If that’s the case–nope, that’s not something I would do. I trust my agent 100% to find the right homes for my books, and she is my greatest ally and partner in publishing. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">I do intend to branch out of science fiction–in fact, both of my current works in progress are not sci fi at all (although one is fantasy and one is just…weird). I doubt I’ll ever branch out of YA, though–but there’s always a chance.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;">All the ten manuscripts I wrote before </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: 'playfair display', sans-serif; font-size: 26px; line-height: inherit; text-align: center;">Across the Universe</em><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"> were different forms of fantasy–a portal fantasy, a contemp fantasy, a high fantasy. Fantasy is my first love, and I’m really hoping to go back to that soon.</span></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Across the Universe</em> dominated in its genre, Science Fiction and your space thriller has everything that exquisitely torments readers with a will/will they survive plot. In interviews you said that your ending is what dictated the plot and development, and then the characters. Was there anything from real life that inspired you to write Amy and Elder the way you did? Had you ever dreamed of going to space?</span></div>
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;">Thank you so much! </span><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;">I’ve always been fascinated by space, although I never really wanted to be an astronaut. Part of my fascination with space includes a very real fear of it–literally everything outside of Earth is specifically designed to kill everything currently on Earth.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Amy and Elder are both alter egos of myself. I made Amy from memories of when I was going to college. I was very young and very scared and very far from home. For the first time, I realized that I could get in trouble–serious trouble–and my parents couldn’t come and bail me out. They were too far away. That fear and realization was the source of Amy.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">For Elder, I was tapping into my own ambition. I desperately wanted to be good enough to be published, and Elder wanted to be good enough to be a leader.</span></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Were you always interested in the YA side of publishing and what about YA made you decided it was the right place for you and your writings?</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Always YA. There was a moment in college that completely changed my perspective. I was an English major, and really wanted to prove myself. I read all the old dead white male authors, the “true literature”…but I wasn’t happy. I went to a bookstore with my roommate, also an English major, and she whispered in a clandestine voice, pointing to the YA section, “Sometimes I like the books from over there.” And there was something that struck me–like, just why should we rank books? What made Shakespeare better than JK Rowling? Nothing. Just personal preference. And the books I really like were the ones over there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">You’ve mentioned not being a fan of “love at first sight” stories especially <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Romeo & Juliet</em>; do you see yourself ever writing fractured stories of fairy tales or Shakespeare’s characters because of this?</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Maybe! I love turning tropes on their heads and twisting ideas.</span></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Body Electric</em> has an amazing cover and the charity of choice for its promotion… donating to the creation of beehives in developing nations… do you keep bees? Are you a fan of <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Elementary</em> perchance because that last episode of season one where he names Watson after one of the bees is a favorite here.</span></div>
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;">I don’t keep bees! I’m actually mildly allergic to them! But I love them anyway. And ironically, I’ve only ever seen one episode of</span><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;"> </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: 'playfair display', sans-serif; font-size: 26px; line-height: inherit; text-align: center;">Elementary</em><span style="font-family: "playfair display" , sans-serif; font-size: 26px; text-align: center;">, and it was exactly that episode!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: 600;">So if this interview so far has not convinced you of jumping on the Beth Revis train, how about this news! </span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4018722.Beth_Revis" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="http://bethrevis.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/bethrevis" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Electric-Beth-Revis/dp/0990662624/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1420689630&sr=8-2&keywords=the+body+electric" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Amazon</a> ~ <a href="http://www.malaprops.com/book/%5Bmodel%5D-515" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Malaprop’s</a></span></div>
perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-64965568245314372312016-09-22T11:38:00.001-04:002016-09-22T11:40:30.161-04:00"LOVE AMPLIFIED" by Ann Marie Frohoff is Romance at Its 'Happy Ending' BestWhen I first tackled the <i>'Heavy Influence'</i> Series, there was a definite gloom hanging over these books -- that I might have picked up a romance series that might throw a loop into the happy ending expected of this type of novel. A genre that's suppose to give me something to smile about at the end; could I have that and a shit ton of angst too?! Well, looks like readers the reckoning has come.<br />
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<i>LOVE AMPLIFIED</i>, the final novel, has arrived!<br />
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And right on the cover there's foreboding words. What is this tagline doing to my nerves? Not sure yet, other than making me feel the need despite my heavily scheduled life, pick up the book and get it read, right damn now.<br />
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SOMETIMES HAPPY ENDINGS COME WITH MORE THAN BARGAINED FOR...<br />
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I can't even... what does that mean?! Anyone else stressed over these words like me? You should talk to me about it below, yeah? Maybe I can convince Ann Marie to chime in.<br />
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Look at this beautiful cover too! Isn't it so attractive?! Oh, but you need more, yeah?! I mean how do you properly throw a "finale tour" for a rockstar without a teaser? You don't. Here you go, then.</div>
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<b>ABOUT THE SERIES:</b></h2>
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<b>ABOUT THE BOOK:</b></h2>
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Sign up to be a part of the tour: <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfWuj6qQvH-O7uoA88rolfG6FKCDyrAzRLvx3_rodi-zgzvig/viewform?c=0&w=1">HERE</a></h3>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><b>SYNOPSIS:</b> Jake Masters is on the rise, sober and inspired. His solo music career has taken off and he's packed away his ugly skeletons - so he thought. When a tropical rendezvous with Alyssa turns into an unexpected life-altering reunion, they must decide what's more important - their happily ever after or doing the right thing. Can it be both?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;">GET THIS BOOK ~ October 25, 2016!</span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #741b47;">Ann Marie Frohoff</span> grew up in sunny Southern California. As a teen and young adult she spent her time frequenting and living in nearly every beachside city up and down the coast. She settled in Hollywood at 19 working in film and TV. Soon her itch to keep moving took over again, taking her to Hawaii for a time and then back to LA.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">She’s now settled in the South Bay area of Los Angeles. Her wanderlust and propensity to live life out loud has brought her many life experiences so many of us only dream about. Always the storyteller, it would be of no surprise to those who grew up with Annie, that she made the transition into a book and screenplay author. You could say that she woke up one day and had an epiphany, deciding to go to school for screenwriting. It’s with this inner fire she set out to write her first screenplay. Soon after, such work made it into the hands of an agency creative executive who challenged her to write a novel to support the complex ensemble cast of characters she’d created. Thus, after only a couple of years and many hours on the road immersing herself in her subject matter; her edgy modern day "Walk The Line meets John Hughes Classics” debut novella, <b><span style="color: #741b47;">SKID OUT</span></b>, has been completed, along with the first installment in her Trilogy. <span style="color: #741b47;"><b>SKID OUT</b></span>is the prequel novella to the HEAVY INFLUENCE TRILOGY.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The first installment in her Heavy Influence Trilogy, <b><span style="color: #741b47;">FIRST KISS</span></b>, is tentatively set to release late spring 2012 — The series is a story about young, reckless love between a rising rock star and his younger muse, spanning 10 years of their tumultuous and passionate relationship. Each book in the Trilogy will come with a soundtrack of original music, of which the lyrics will appear in the pages of the books. (Alternative Rock Genre).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Annie has now also delved into the supernatural fantasy world with her writing partners Shaun Barger and songwriter/musician Matthew Reich. Taking inspiration directly from song lyrics and building an entire realm of vastly complex characters and plot lines; weaving history, fantasy and heavy doses of romance together. You will be kept turning the pages of “The Zodiac Wars: My Gemini” novellas and “Precious Metal: The Prince and the Gypsy” book series. Both series of books are currently in development</span></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5211881.Ann_Marie_Frohoff">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/frohoffwrites">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/authoramfrohoff/">Facebook</a> ~ <a href="http://amfrohoff.com/">Website</a> ~ <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Ann-Marie-Frohoff/e/B00BU8RDFQ">Amazon</a></b></div>
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<br />Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-29833915794254364402016-09-21T11:05:00.002-04:002016-09-21T11:18:07.370-04:00'Waiting On' Wednesday: Flame in the Mist by Renée Ahdieh<div style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px;">
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<span style="color: #606060; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Having had the opportunity to meet this lovely author and hear her speak surrounded by other amazing authors, I finally went looking for what's next on her list. This book looks to be right up my alley given that it is being touted as Mulan (my fave Disney film) meets Tamora Pierce (easily my fave YA author of all time!!!) on Amazon. Who went a bit delirious at that description?!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;"><b>DETAILS:</b></span></span></div>
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<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Title: <i>Flame in the Mist</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers</b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>May 2, 2017</span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><span style="color: #606060;">Author(s): </span></b></span>Renée Ahdieh</li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Series: <i>Stand Alone (for now)</i></b></span></li>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The daughter of a prominent samurai, Mariko has long known her place—she may be an accomplished alchemist, whose cunning rivals that of her brother Kenshin, but because she is not a boy, her future has always been out of her hands. At just seventeen years old, Mariko is promised to Minamoto Raiden, the son of the emperor's favorite consort—a political marriage that will elevate her family's standing. But en route to the imperial city of Inako, Mariko narrowly escapes a bloody ambush by a dangerous gang of bandits known as the Black Clan, who she learns has been hired to kill her before she reaches the palace.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Dressed as a peasant boy, Mariko sets out to infiltrate the ranks of the Black Clan, determined to track down the person responsible for the target on her back. But she's quickly captured and taken to the Black Clan’s secret hideout, where she meets their leader, the rebel ronin Takeda Ranmaru, and his second-in-command, his best friend Okami. Still believing her to be a boy, Ranmaru and Okami eventually warm to Mariko, impressed by her intellect and ingenuity. As Mariko gets closer to the Black Clan, she uncovers a dark history of secrets, of betrayal and murder, which will force her to question everything she's ever known.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Renée Ahdieh is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In her spare time, she likes to dance salsa and collect shoes. She is passionate about all kinds of curry, rescue dogs, and college basketball. The first few years of her life were spent in a high-rise in South Korea; consequently, Renée enjoys having her head in the clouds. She lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband and their tiny overlord of a dog. She is the author of the #1 </span><i style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">New York Times<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;"> </span></i><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">bestselling novels</span><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span><i style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Wrath and the Dawn</i><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">and</span><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span><i style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Rose and the Dagger.</i></div>
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<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">As always thanks to <a href="http://breakingthespine.blogspot.com/" style="color: #cc3300; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Breaking the Spine</a> for coming up with this idea, although it seems as if not since August 24th has a Waiting on Wednesday been posted at that blog site.</span></i></div>
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Also, interested in following me and don't know where I am?</h4>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/sabriel25" style="color: #993322; text-decoration: none;">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sabriel75/" style="color: #993322; text-decoration: none;">Instagram</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/beth.beth.7121" style="color: #993322; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-37639198879746031882016-08-04T07:00:00.000-04:002016-08-04T07:00:18.778-04:00AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Huntley Fitzpatrick Knows Romantic Personally<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
When you’re the mother of six, juggling all the things in the air might not come naturally, but it’s a must. Add in a side of writing some of the most adored YA romances and you’re talking about one talented author — Huntley Fitzpatrick. Which is why I’m not surprised Huntley pulls from her own life - the quirks, the comments, and the hilarious dialogue - since every conversation, interaction between her fictional tight-knit families feel ever so real and heartfelt. It's as if the characters inhabiting the book were pulled from the clutches of reality and forever preserved in the pages of her sweet romances.</div>
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And woah — wow factor, does Huntley know sexy and mysterious and adventurous in a first hand way. If you hadn’t heard, there was an incident on a train that involved kissing a stranger. Yep… the lady doth not protest, and gave up all the glorious details of a passing in the night story that was all her own making. Such a romantic moment!</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #a64d79;">Okay so I keep hearing about this stranger you kissed on a train — what’s the story behind this moment? Are you able to expand upon it? Is the stranger still a stranger?</span></span><span style="color: #545353;"> This is what you get when you are honest about things no one knows about you! But seriously, yes, I did kiss a stranger, and to this day, I don’t know his story. Or remember his name, though he did tell it to me. I was taking the train from Boston to Washington, D.C. The guy I’d been in love with for several years had put me on the train. I was still in the friend zone with him, but the guy who sat down next to me must have adding up my wistful gaze out the window and air of general pining. He was quiet, kind of shy, gorgeous in an understated blond Robert Redford type way (that’s how I described him in my journal —sounds almost impossible, though). We talked all the way to Philadelphia. It was late at night, and the train lights were low. The train was pretty empty. We rested our feet on the seat opposite us and whispered back and forth and finally he asked if he could kiss me. I said yes. It was completely unlike me. But I have never regretted it for a second. Although it might have made a better story if the stranger had turned out to be Obama or John Green.</span></div>
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[See… See… is that not the most romantic story? If that was her real life, no wonder she has no problem jumping from it to fictional writing. However, as darling as that moment is, she also knows the flip side of things given people have no problem offering advice on her large family and it’s not always the nicest reactions either. I felt horrible for Mrs. Garrett at the comments she had to withstand in THE BOY MOST LIKELY. Her children, her choice and Huntley channeled her feelings and incidents into a beautiful, kind mother who has rubbed off on Alice — Tim’s love interest here.]</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #a64d79;">How do you schedule in writing time with six children and does it coincide with your favorite part of the day to write? Do you have certain times of the day where you are more inspired to write?</span></span><span style="color: #545353;"> One of the things I’m always getting told as the mother of a large family is how easy-going I am. This usually comes right after “You’ve certainly got your hands full” and immediately before “What were you thinking?” (**Yes, every one of the comments made to Mrs. Garrett in the supermarket came directly from my journal). The fact is, I’m easy-going and disciplined in equal measure, and that combo works for me with both writing and family. I write when I can, where I can (although it really really helps if I’m alone and it’s quiet)—and whether that’s at 2 a.m. or in the library at dinner time or away at a hotel for a weekend or for twenty minutes when I have to call down the stairs to only disturb me if there’s blood or unconsciousness, that’s what I do.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #a64d79;">What do your children think of your career and how do they inspire your novels, your writing?</span></span><span style="color: #545353;"> They have a big mix of feelings. They’re proud of me—they love having me visit their classrooms, they tell their friends and their teachers to read me, they move my books so the cover rather than the spine faces out when they see them at a bookstore, they come home with stories they think I might be able to ‘use’, they are honest about what words I use that are totally not “real kid” words. But they also want to be sure that their needs are met first and foremost, they get embarrassed by my love and kissing scenes, they miss me when I’m at conferences and they fear that I’ll use their lives as material. I don’t use anybody’s life but my own and my imagination as material, but having kids does keep the feelings of being young right in front of me, not just in my memories, my journals, and my heart.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #a64d79;">You’ve mentioned having a desire to possibly breakaway from YA romance, has that happened yet? Your next novels — will we find them in historical fiction or New Adult? Are you even allowed to give us a hint of what you’re working on next?</span></span><span style="color: #545353;"> YA still feels like my home and the place for the stories I want to tell right now. But I read all genres, and I’ve tried writing several (mystery, historical fiction, new adult). Right now I have an idea for a woman’s fiction story percolating in my mind. I make notes on it, and sort of noodle on how to make it work when I’m waiting in line or stuck in traffic, etc…it’s not a story I ever thought I’d find myself writing. I also wrote an (unpublished) New Adult several years ago, and I periodically wonder about updating it. But for now, I’m all YA.</span></div>
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My next book features a crash, a mystery, and a pair of teenagers on a quest to discover their fathers’ true identities. But it’s contemporary YA romance like the previous three.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #a64d79;">Out of all the jobs you’ve had – besides author – which do you think best suited you and why? Which one shaped you most into the person you are? How much of your experiences at these jobs filter into your novels, your characterizations of persons in your novels. You have a wide array of characters, all with varied backgrounds and vices — from where do you think you draw the most inspiration for them?</span><span style="color: #545353;"> </span></span><span style="color: #545353;">Great question—like all the above, it really got me thinking. The jobs I most adored was being an editor at Harlequin—I got to do pretty much every single thing I loved, and get paid for it. I practically sprinted from the subway to the office every day. But by the time I got that job, I was in my late twenties and already knew who I was. All the other jobs along the way shaped me—I think that’s true of everyone, but certainly me. I got to live multiple lives because of all those jobs—I remember clearly what it’s like to be a waitress, and babysit, and the stress of owning your own business, I’ve been both the privileged visitor to the summer community and the hardworking local. I hope I’m easier to work with as a writer because I was an editor, the same way I hoped the reverse. Personally, I try to bring everything I was into who I am all the time—to imagine how it feels to be on the flip side. It works wonders when dealing with your children, and it’s not a bad way to live in general.</span></div>
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[No it is not a bad way to live at all. In fact, it’s quite a lovely sentiment and one a lot of people espouse. Of course, I think my mom was fond of the saying: Walk a mile in another person’s shoes before you even begin to think of understanding them. As if I’d put my feet in someone else’s shoes. Yeah… I was a bit of a smart-mouthed brat sometimes. You’ve got the idea though, right?]</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #a64d79;">ABOUT HUNTLEY FITZPATRICK:</span></h3>
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Born to parents who read anything and everything, the young, shy and nearsighted Huntley found herself searching for books that let her fall in love… with the story and the boy. It was only natural that one day she would decide to pursue a career in writing. In whole-hearted support, her father presented her with a typewriter, a package of Lucky Strike cigarettes, a bottle of Scotch and a note advising her to “Be Bold, Be Bold, Be Bold.”</div>
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For her tenth birthday.</div>
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Skipping the Scotch and the smokes, she began to write. Her first story involved a family with twenty children who lived by the ocean. The parents were twenty-two. To this day, some things remain constant in Huntley’s life: her love of family, salt air, summer and beaches and a shaky grasp of math.</div>
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In her teenage years, Huntley’s writing involved forcing friends to listen to her stories. At times this involved a twenty-page analysis of a two minute conversation with her current crush and included such phrases as “Pause. Silence. Much audible blushing.” Already, she was well on the path to exploring the paradoxical emotions involved in first love and true love. Sometimes we get lucky and they are the same thing.</div>
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Huntley spent her college years majoring in Shakespeare and completing a minor in daydreaming, following which she spent time working as a waitress, a caterer, a publicist’s minion, a bartender, an account firm assistant, romance novel editor, and co-owner of a café.</div>
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Along the way she, too, fell in love.</div>
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Today, Huntley lives on the coast of Massachusetts with her encouraging husband and their six energetic children who, thankfully, let her pick their brains, advising her on whatever is currently cool and reminding her of what always matters. In between – and sometimes during – the moments of chaos that surround her large family, Huntley can often be seen dashing to her computer or scribbling with whatever writing implements are on hand—lipstick or eyebrow pencil on an ATM receipt is fair game. Thoughts of young love are never far from her mind.</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4660036.Huntley_Fitzpatrick" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0147519284/ref=x_gr_w_glide_sout_t2_control_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_glide_sout_t2_control_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0147519284&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Amazon</a> ~ <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-boy-most-likely-to-huntley-fitzpatrick/1121098456" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">B&N</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/huntleyfitz" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HuntleyFitzpatrickBooks" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Facebook</a> ~ <a href="http://www.huntleyfitzpatrick.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a></div>
Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-38982339362728700792016-08-03T18:43:00.000-04:002016-08-03T18:54:46.231-04:00'Waiting On' Wednesday: Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
Veronica Roth skyrocketed to book fame with her vividly compelling <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">‘Divergent’ </em>trilogy. Now a movie starring some of the most popular actors of this era, Roth watched her written worlds come to life on-screen. Huge and overwhelming, her life upturned from quiet to celebrity overnight, but she has stayed busy.<br />
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<a href="http://www.parnassusbooks.net/ParnassusNext">ParnassusNext</a> sent me a published sneak peek of <i>Carve the Mark</i> this week with my subscription book (<i>This Savage Song</i>) and reminded me of the brilliance of this book coming. I adore the character interaction already. Have you read the excerpt from EW?</div>
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<a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2016/05/05/veronica-roth-carve-the-mark" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">EW announced</a> the title and revealed the cover for <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Carve the Mark</em>! It will be the first of two books. A sic-fi duology, with a hero and heroine leading the narration. Cyra and Akos might come from two very individual worlds, separated in a caste society; but they are destined to become unexpected allies.</div>
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Neither present with a currentgift (unique powers to affect the future that everyone is meant to receive in this world) that will aid them in life. That’s an anomaly, and on the planet they live, ruled by brutal control with violence and vengeance among the favored clastes, it’s a life sentence of misery. Together though, Cyra and Akos might be the trigger needed to reset the balance of the world.</div>
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<i>Perpetual New Girls</i> pulled a bit of the exclusive excerpt from <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">EW</em> as a sneak peek for here, but to get the full effect of Chapter seven and the tone of Roth’s newest work, head <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2016/05/05/veronica-roth-carve-the-mark" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">HERE</a>.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;"><b>DETAILS:</b></span></span></div>
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<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Title: <i>Carve the Mark</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books</b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>January 17, 2017</span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><span style="color: #606060;">Author(s): </span>Veronica Roth</b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Series: <i>Untitled Duology</i></b></span></li>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">EXCERPT:</span></div>
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I was tall, too, but that was where my physical similarities with my brother ended. It wasn’t uncommon for Shotet siblings to look dissimilar, given how blended our blood was, but we were more distinct than most.</div>
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The boy—Akos—lifted his eyes to Ryzek’s. I had first seen the name “Akos” in a Shotet history book. It had belonged to a religious leader, a cleric who had taken his life rather than dishonor the current by holding a currentblade. So this Thuvhesit boy had a Shotet name. Had his parents simply forgotten its origins? Or did they want to honor some long-forgotten Shotet blood?</div>
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“Why are we here?” Akos said hoarsely, in Shotet.</div>
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Ryzek only smiled further. “I see the rumors are true—you <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">can </em>speak the revelatory tongue. How fascinating. I wonder how you came by your Shotet blood?” He prodded the corner of Akos’s eye, at the bruise there, making him wince. “You received quite a punishment for your murder of one of my soldiers, I see. I take it your rib cage is suffering damage.”</div>
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Ryzek flinched a little as he spoke. Only someone who had known him as long as I had could have seen it, I was certain. Ryzek hated to watch pain, not out of empathy for the person suffering it, but because he didn’t like to be reminded that pain existed, that he was as vulnerable to it as anyone else.</div>
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“Almost had to carry him here,” Vas said. “Definitely had to carry him onto the ship.”</div>
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“Usually you would not survive a defiant gesture like killing one of my soldiers,” Ryzek said, speaking down to Akos like he was a child. “But your fate is to die serving the family Noavek, to die serving <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">me</em>, and I’d rather get a few seasons out of you first, you see.”</div>
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Akos had been tense since I laid eyes on him. As I watched, it was as if all the hardness in him melted away, leaving him looking as vulnerable as a small child. His fingers were curled, but not into fists. Passively, like he was sleeping.</div>
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I guess he hadn’t known his fate.</div>
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“That isn’t true,” Akos said, like he was waiting for Ryzek to soothe away the fear. I pressed a sharp pain from my stomach with a palm.</div>
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“Oh, I assure you that it is. Would you like me to read from the transcript of the announcement?” Ryzek took a square of paper from his back pocket—he had come to this meeting prepared to wreak emotional havoc, apparently—and unfolded it. Akos was trembling.</div>
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“‘The third child of the family Kereseth,’” Ryzek read, in Othyrian. Somehow hearing the fate in the language in which it had been announced made it sound more real to me. I wondered if Akos, shuddering at each syllable, felt the same. “‘Will die in service to the family Noavek.’”</div>
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Ryzek let the paper drop to the floor. Akos grabbed it so roughly it almost tore. He stayed crouched as he read the words—again and again—as if rereading them would change them. As if his death, and his service to our family, were not preordained.</div>
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“It won’t happen,” Akos said, harder this time, as he stood. “I would rather … I would rather <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">die</em> than—”</div>
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“Oh, I don’t think that’s true,” Ryzek said, lowering his voice to a near-whisper. He bent close to Akos’s face. Akos’s fingers tore holes in the paper, though he was otherwise still. “I know what people look like when they want to die. I’ve brought many of them to that point myself. And you are still very much desperate to survive.”</div>
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Akos took a breath, and his eyes found my brother’s with new steadiness. “My brother has nothing to do with you. You have no claim to him. Let him go, and I … I won’t give you any trouble.”</div>
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“You seem to have made several incorrect assumptions about what you and your brother are doing here,” Ryzek said. “We did not, as you have assumed, cross the Divide just to speed along your fate. Your brother is not collateral damage; <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">you </em>are. We went in search of him.”</div>
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“<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">You</em> didn’t cross the Divide,” Akos snapped. “You just sat here and let your lackeys do it all for you.”</div>
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Ryzek turned and climbed to the top of the platform. The wall above it was covered with weapons of all shapes and sizes, most of them currentblades as long as my arm. He selected a large, thick knife with a sturdy handle, like a meat cleaver.</div>
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“Your brother has a particular destiny,” Ryzek said, looking the knife over. “I assume, since you did not know your own fate, that you don’t know his, either?”</div>
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Ryzek grinned the way he always did when he knew something other people didn’t.</div>
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“‘To see the future of the galaxy,’” Ryzek quoted, in Shotet this time. “In other words, to be this planet’s next oracle.”</div>
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Akos was silent.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">ABOUT VERONICA ROTH:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5l-JFSHrp56Yl4l8vcY0PxgkoMGvlpjoOO1an4MwTwmBjPexPvS_TTc8W0i1LuqNMRZqH5Tv3vx5RQNz5n1A9H6T6HJ2ZgRtUCBwDM7cQ2fZAjqS_sYqB32q3DjDGjbRWuFsZ85DAj7w/s1600/veronicaroth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5l-JFSHrp56Yl4l8vcY0PxgkoMGvlpjoOO1an4MwTwmBjPexPvS_TTc8W0i1LuqNMRZqH5Tv3vx5RQNz5n1A9H6T6HJ2ZgRtUCBwDM7cQ2fZAjqS_sYqB32q3DjDGjbRWuFsZ85DAj7w/s320/veronicaroth.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
Veronica Roth is from a Chicago suburb. She studied creative writing at Northwestern University, and wrote DIVERGENT (Katherine Tegen Books, May 2011) and INSURGENT (May 2012). The third and final book in The Divergent Trilogy, ALLEGIANT, came out on October 22, 2013. In the meantime she spends endless hours browsing Wikipedia in her pajamas as she eats corn flakes. (Or some other kind of bland breakfast cereal.)</div>
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<a href="http://veronicarothbooks.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-website-has-moved.html" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a> ~ <a href="http://theartofnotwriting.tumblr.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Tumblr</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/VeronicaRoth" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4039811.Veronica_Roth" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a><br />
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<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">As always thanks to <a href="http://breakingthespine.blogspot.com/" style="color: #cc3300; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Breaking the Spine</a> for hosting.</span></i></div>
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Also, interested in following me and don't know where I am?</h4>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/sabriel25" style="color: #993322; text-decoration: none;">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sabriel75/" style="color: #993322; text-decoration: none;">Instagram</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/beth.beth.7121" style="color: #993322; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-64652117081144657492016-07-14T07:00:00.000-04:002016-07-14T07:00:00.706-04:00AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Gifts of Good Foods Makes Cinda Williams Chima Happy<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
Tour rituals, midwest flavor and a new series makes for a trifecta of good times for fans of Cinda Williams Chima. What’s better than food recs from someone who knows the area? Chima, also, has received some amazing fan gifts. Her most memorable, of course, comes back to food.</div>
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Which frankly, made for a deliciously good chat.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Do you have a favorite restaurant in Ohio? Is there a specific place you go that you take out-of-towners to get that midwest flavor?</em><br />
There are so many good restaurants in the Cleveland area. For midwestern fare, I like the Welshfield Inn in Geauga County; a great mingle of comfort food and culinary innovation. I’m also fond of Grove Hill in Chagrin Falls.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">What is your favorite food and why?</em><br />
Wow, I don’t even know how to choose. Popcorn is right up there, partly because my family had popcorn for dinner every Sunday night from the time I was little. It was an extra treat to look forward to top off the weekend. I still do that when I’m home.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Was it difficult to return to the Seven Realms since it sounds like things have not progressed kindly in that world? Or did you always have a vision for this new series?</em><br />
I guess I could say I had a vision for it, because some of the scenes and events in the Shattered Realms happened in some earlier fiction I’d written set in that world. The Seven Realms was a kind of prequel to these stories. That said, the stories, characters and so on have changed dramatically.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">If you were a mage, what do you think your skill set would include and why?</em><br />
I love the notion of being able to shape magic through words, eg spells because, after all, I am a word person.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">On tour, do you have any traditions? Anything you do to get yourself pumped up for going in front of crowds?</em><br />
Before every tour, I have this ritual where I read four or five blogs on how to pack for a tour in a carryon. I get out my little carryon suitcase and make piles on my bed, counting things out and coordinating and then I just throw a whole bunch of other clothes in, because, anything can happen, and switch to a checked bag.<br />
I’m fortunate in that I’ve done quite a bit of public speaking in my life, and I love to hang out with people who love books.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Can you tell us about some of your most memorable gifts from fans while on tour?</em><br />
Once in Texas I mentioned that I am most fond of salsa, and a fan who owned a specialty foods company sent me a whole array of salsas and sauces from blistering hot to relatively mild.</div>
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<b>COVER REVEAL:</b></div>
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<span id="freeText17576658569680442834" style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><b>SYNOPSIS:</b> Alyssa ana'Raisa is the reluctant princess heir to the Gray Wolf throne of Fells, a queendom embroiled in a seemingly endless war. Hardened by too many losses, Lyss is more comfortable striking with a sword than maneuvering at court. After a brush with death, she goes on the offensive, meaning to end the war that has raged her whole life. If her gamble doesn't pay off, she could lose her queendom before she even ascends to the throne.<br /><br />Across enemy lines in Arden, young rising star Captain Halston Matelon has been fighting for his king since he was a lýtling. Lately, though, he finds himself sent on ever more dangerous assignments. Between the terrifying rumors of witches and wolfish warriors to the north and his cruel king at home, Hal is caught in an impossible game of life and death.<br /><br />Set in the world of the acclaimed Seven Realms series, this is a thrilling story of the unfathomable costs of war, the allure of dark magic, and two principled and conflicted characters, drawn together despite everything they stand to lose.</span></div>
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<b>DISCOVER MORE: </b></div>
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<i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">New York Times</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> and </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">USA Today</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> bestselling author Cinda Williams Chima grew up with talking animals and kick-butt Barbies. She began writing poetry and stories in third grade and novels in junior high school. These days she writes fantasy fiction for teens of all ages. Her Heir Chronicles contemporary fantasy series includes </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Warrior Heir</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (2006), </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Wizard Heir </i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">(2007), </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Dragon Heir</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (2008), </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Enchanter Heir</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (2013) and </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Sorcerer Heir</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (2014).</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Chima’s high fantasy Seven Realms series launched with </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Demon King</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (2009), followed by </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Exiled Queen</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (September, 2010) </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Gray Wolf Throne </i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">(2011) and </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Crimson Crown</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> (2012). Both series have been </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">New York Times</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> bestsellers.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Chima’s Shattered Realms high fantasy four-book series is forthcoming from HarperCollins. The series debut, </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Flamecaster</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, was published by HarperCollins in April 2016. The</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> sequel, </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Shadowcaster</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, is scheduled to release in April 4, 2017.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Chima’s books have received starred reviews in </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Kirkus</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> and VOYA, among others. They have been named Booksense and IndieNext picks, an International Reading Association Young Adult Choice, a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, to the </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Kirkus</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> Best YA list, and the VOYA Editors’ Choice, Best Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror, and Perfect Tens lists. Her books also appear on numerous state awards lists and won the Buckeye Teen Book Award in 2011.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Chima was a recipient of the 2008 Lit Award for Fiction from the Cleveland Lit and was named a </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Cleveland Magazine</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> Interesting Person 2009. She lives in Ohio with her family, and is always working on her next novel.</span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Find Chima online at </span><a href="http://www.cindachima.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">www.cindachima.com</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> or </span><a href="http://cindachima.blogspot.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">http://cindachima.blogspot.com/</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">. She is on Facebook at </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/cindawilliamschima" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">www.facebook.com/cindawilliamschima</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> and on Twitter @cindachima and her Instagram tag is cindachima. </span></div>
Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-42398762466757507352016-07-13T17:33:00.000-04:002016-07-13T17:48:40.334-04:00'Waiting On' Wednesday #24: The Midnight Star by Marie Lu<div style="line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;">
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<span style="color: #606060; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 16px;">So many of my favorite series come to an end this year! The third book of the "Young Elites" series - <i>The Midnight Star</i> - though, it is definitely one of my most anticipated "the end" reads. When Marie Lu unveiled the cover, the sensation that coming was a definitive closing to this story and that it will be painful. Even she was surprised by how much changed from start to finish in her completion of <i>The Midnight Star</i>, her keen sense of saying goodbye felt momentous to her. (queue symphonic sad song)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #606060; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 16px;">Lu posted this quote, which… what?! Break my heart, why don’t you?! Oh God, there will be sobbing no doubt when I finally finish this book.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;">“Teren smiles at me. His voice echoes in the chamber, low and smoky. ‘Mi Adelinetta.’ ” —<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Midnight Star</em></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;">When Lu spoke to <a href="http://mashable.com/2016/04/21/the-midnight-star-cover-reveal-marie-lu/#q.pr3ZosJqqr" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Mashable</a> about the ending, she didn’t hesitate to talk about her style of writing off the cuff. I have also talked to her about this way of writing and how sometimes it even throws her off what she thought might be how the story would turn out. If anything, it does give an air of chaos and unpredictability to her plot. Which will kill us all this time around, right?!</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;">“I am a pantser writer [a writer who works without a story outline], so I don’t always know where my stories are going to end up. The ending for The Midnight Star is quite different from the original ending that I had envisioned, which makes me a little nervous. I hope that readers will like it. I didn’t really see it coming until kind of recently. I am guessing that surprise will carry over to the reader as well.” – Marie Lu</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;">Good news is that there will be more romance, sibling interaction and Adeline in full on bad-guy mode in <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Midnight Star</em>. As always, the line between good and evil becomes blurred and will not make it easy for readers picking sides. Of course, that said, Lu knows redemption needs a way to happen because Adeline is too much of a hero even if her heart’s been chained away by darkness.</span></span></div>
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<li style="border: none; color: #606060; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Title: <i>The Midnight Star</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14px;"><b>Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers</b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>October 11, 2016</span></li>
<li style="border: none; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="color: #606060;">Author(s): <a href="http://marielubooks.tumblr.com/">Marie Lu</a></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Series: <i>Young Elites</i></b></span></li>
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;">There was once a time when darkness shrouded the world, and the darkness had a queen.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;">Adelina Amouteru is done suffering. She’s turned her back on those who have betrayed her and achieved the ultimate revenge: victory. Her reign as the White Wolf has been a triumphant one, but with each conquest her cruelty only grows. The darkness within her has begun to spiral out of control, threatening to destroy all that she’s achieved.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;">Adelina’s forced to revisit old wounds when a new danger appears, putting not only Adelina at risk, but every Elite and the very world they live in. In order to save herself and preserve her empire, Adelina and her Roses must join the Daggers on a perilous quest—though this uneasy alliance may prove to be the real danger.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #b6d7a8; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;">Bestselling author Marie Lu concludes Adelina's story with this haunting and hypnotizing final installment to the <i>Young Elites</i> series.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="background-color: #b6d7a8;">~~~~~*~*</span></span></div>
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<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">As always thanks to <a href="http://breakingthespine.blogspot.com/" style="color: #cc3300; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Breaking the Spine</a> for hosting.</span></i></div>
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Also, interested in following me and don't know where I am?</h4>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-31890287880465969472016-07-12T22:17:00.000-04:002016-07-13T17:51:47.875-04:00AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: Melissa de la Cruz Has ‘Golden’ Touch in 2016 with Five Book Releases<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
I've received three books of five that Melissa de la Cruz will release in 2016. She and her husband, Michael Johnston, put out the last novel in the <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Heart of Dread </em>series – <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Golden</em> – and fans are calling it an “epic conclusion.” On the same day, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Surviving High School</em>, which de la Cruz penned along with social media mega-star Lele Pons found a spot on bookstore shelves. But there’s still more awesome to come!</div>
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May 24th, de la Cruz put out <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Return to the Isle of the Lost</em>, the <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Descendants</em> sequel finding its way to the public and already taking up space on my daughter's shelf. Her new YA contemporary novel, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Something in Between</em>, which launches a new Seventeen magazine imprint with HarlequinTEEN, comes out on September 27th, and <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Double Eclipse</em>, the sequel to <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Triple Moon</em> in the <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Summer on East End</em> YA series, out November 8th.</div>
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If that were not enough to keep de la Cruz busy, she is an active planner in the <a href="http://www.yallwest.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">YallWest Santa Monica Festival</a>, which took place April 29th through May 1st.</div>
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So what do you ask someone that tied up in literary goodness? Oh you know, just the usual… like what’s your favorite color? Trust us, we were stumped too, which is why without any more further ado, let’s chat with Melissa de la Cruz.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">Favorite color and why?</span></em></span><br />
Fuchsia, mostly because I like that it’s hard to spell and pronounce. Also, who can say no to hot pink?</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">Do you write with music on or off?</span></em><br />
Off. Silence is golden.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">Speaking of music, what is your favorite earworm right now? What song can you not stop listening to…</span></em><br />
Oy, so many but lately I have been singing Heart Attack by Demi Lovato especially the lines “When I don’t care, I can play them like a Ken doll, won’t wash my haaaiiirrr and make them BOUNCE LIKE A BASKETBALL!!” I love that song, especially how he makes her “wanna act like a girl, paint my nails and wear high heels.” I think it’s my philosophy of love really, how one can feel armored up and genderless (what is a ‘girl’ anyway) and then you fall in love and all of a sudden you feel softer and sweeter, and you realize that’s what love is all about and how awesome it is to be feminine. I guess I’m a bit old-fashioned maybe, but thank god only one guy makes me feel like that and I’m already married to him. You don’t get to be successful without being a little bit of a bulldozer and a battle-ax but with the right guy, I’m a mermaid. Ha!</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">If you could sit down and have tea or coffee with one of your characters, who would you choose and why? You’ve sort of already had the chance, right? How was it meeting Dove Cameron? Did she feel like Mal to you in some ways?</span></em><br />
Definitely! Oh Dove and I had SO MUCH FUN promoting <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Isle of the Lost</em> together, we really bonded on our love for villains. She’s such a strong role model for kids and I’m so proud of her. I think I’d like to hang out with Schuyler, Jack, Oliver, Mimi and the Blue Bloods crew. It would be cool to meet them, and we’d have cocktails at a fancy New York hotel.</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">By the way, have you seen the second Descendants film yet? Or had a chance to visit the set?</span></em><br />
I just got the script! Production isn’t for a while yet, but I’m looking forward to visiting for sure!</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">How was planning YallWest? How is it different from a convention?</span></em><br />
We are a festival, not a convention, as we wanted to keep entrance free, and it is a charity and way to give back to our community while celebrating our author community. Planning is going well and we have such a great slate and so much fun programming this year, including a Quidditch game and building robots and meeting awesome storymakers from Hollywood. We’re so excited!</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0489b1;">Is there anything in particular you remember making you stand out in high school? How did you survive those years? Any advice from that time of your life that you treasure even today? </span></em><br />
I was class president and I was the smartest kid in my class, but I lost out on valedictorian because my French teacher finally realized I could not speak French and gave me a B+ my last semester instead of the usual A minus. I survived by reading a lot of books and escaping into fantasy worlds and also knowing without a doubt that things would get better for me. I just had to bide my time. All those things that matter in high school are so shallow – how rich your parents are, how fast you are with boys, drinking, partying, you can do all those things later. I knew that that one day I wouldn’t be stuck in a school full of debutantes and I would meet people who were intense, intellectual and compassionate just like me. The vapidity of those years is what I remember the most. I remember maybe one of my teachers telling me that high school sucks for smart people, but the rest of my life would be amazing, and he was right. He also said I was going to be a writer. High school honors English teachers are the best people in the world.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">ABOUT THE BOOKS:</span><br />
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· <u style="box-sizing: border-box;"></u><b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">SURVIVING HIGH SCHOOL</b>, which de la <span class="il" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cruz</span> wrote with social media mega-star <b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Lele</b><b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"> Pons</b> (10.6m Vine followers, 4.6m Instagram followers, 2m Facebook fans, and 492K Twitter followers), was published by Gallery Books on <span class="il" style="box-sizing: border-box;">April</span> 5, 2016. A fish-out-of-water story of a girl navigating the wilds of high school, the novel follows Lele as she goes from being bullied to the most popular girl in school, inspired by Lele’s real life experiences and popular Vine videos and handcrafted with <span class="il" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Melissa</span>’s literary skills.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">FIND IT: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1501120530/ref=x_gr_w_bb_sout?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_sout-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1501120530&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/surviving-high-school-lele-pons/1123197307;jsessionid=74C88FB23D24A4A308690394C0389483.prodny_store01-atgap08?ean=9781501120534&st=AFF&2sid=Goodreads,%20Inc_2227948_NA&sourceId=AFFGoodreads,%20IncM000004" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">B&N</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25814205-surviving-high-school" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a></span></div>
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· <u style="box-sizing: border-box;"></u><b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">GOLDEN</b>, which de la <span class="il" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cruz</span> wrote with her husband Michael Johnston, was published by Putnam also on <span class="il" style="box-sizing: border-box;">April</span> 5, 2016. This is the action-packed finale to the couple’s Heart of Dread YA fantasy trilogy. <b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">GOLDEN </b>exemplifies de la <span class="il" style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cruz</span>’s knack for reinventing a familiar genre and transforming it into a highly original adventure filled with romance, mystery and magic.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">FIND IT: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/039925756X/ref=x_gr_w_glide_bb_sout?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_glide_bb_sout-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=039925756X&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/golden-melissa-de-la-cruz/1122291994?ean=9780399257568" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">B&N</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/96188-heart-of-dread" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">DISCOVER MORE:</span></div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Melissa de la Cruz </b><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">is the #1 </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">New York Times</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times </i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">and </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Publishers Weekly</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> internationally bestselling author of many critically acclaimed novels, including </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Isle of the Lost: A Descendants Novel </i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">and </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Triple Moon: Summer on East End</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">. Her Blue Bloods series has sold over three million copies, and her Witches of East End series became an hour-long television drama on the Lifetime network.</span></div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/MelissadelaCruz" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21911.Melissa_de_la_Cruz" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="http://melissa-delacruz.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a></div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Michael Johnston</b><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> is Melissa’s husband and co-creator of the Blue Bloods and Witches of East End series. The first book in his epic fantasy series will be published by Tor in 2017. Melissa and Michael live with their daughter in Los Angeles and Palm Springs, California.</span></div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Lele Pons </b><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">was born in Caracas, Venezuela and moved with her family to Miami when she was five years old. She got her start when she created a page on the video-sharing app Vine in December 2013. Originally intended as a fun outlet to showcase her creativity, her vines evolved into comedic sketches and pulling practical jokes on family and friends. Her following grew from five thousand local followers to more than ten million by November 2015. </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Today she is one of the most recognizable names on social media, and has been featured in </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Vanity Fair</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The New York Times</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Teen Vogue</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Time,</i><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> and more. Lele has been nominated for three Teen Choice Awards, a People’s Choice Award, and a Streamy Award. In 2015, she was invited to the White House by First Lady Michelle Obama to help launch her campaign for disadvantaged kids to go to college. Lele graduated from high school in 2015 and currently resides in Los Angeles, CA.</span></div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/lelepons" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25814205-surviving-high-school" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a> ~ <a href="http://simonandschusterpublishing.com/lele-pons/index.html" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-79861213310894079082016-07-05T07:54:00.000-04:002016-07-05T08:05:01.461-04:00AUTHOR(S) SPOTLIGHT: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl ~ An Unstoppable Force of Two (Video Interview)<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
<a href="http://www.margaret-stohl.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Margaret Stohl</a> and <a href="http://www.kamigarcia.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Kami Garcia</a> are burning up the best-seller lists with their <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Caster Chronicles</em> and new spin-off <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Dangerous Creatures</em> series, however, these two authors have standalone projects too. Don’t forget they have other projects where their name only features individually on those novels.</div>
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For a detailed interview and an inside look at their literary beginnings, check out <a href="http://perpetualnewgirl.blogspot.com/2016/07/authors-spotlight-kami-garcia-margaret.html"><span style="color: #ef2673;"><span style="-webkit-transition: 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; transition: 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Part I of this interview</span></span>.</a></div>
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Now for the super fun part… live video interview:</div>
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Oh and a purple-streaked silver-haired foxy author appeared. <a href="http://zacbrewer.com/">Zac Brewer</a> who lived in St. Louis, came out to chat and add another perspective to the interview. These three are amazing authors, but wait... there's another extra bonus! <a href="http://sarahjude.com/">Sarah Jude</a>, who also, lives in St. Louis, came out to fangirl with us.</div>
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Also, many thanks to the <a href="http://www.slcl.org/content/daniel-boone-branch">Daniel Boone Branch</a> of the St. Louis Libraries for hosting the event and <a href="http://ridleypearson.com/">Ridley Pearson</a>, the moderator of the night, for asking some great questions. Check out this cute video to see what he is up to right now.</div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-66599583994487800962016-07-05T07:27:00.000-04:002016-07-05T08:17:01.796-04:00AUTHOR(S) SPOTLIGHT: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stoh ~ An Unstoppable Force of Two (Part I)<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
After meeting Kamie Garcia and Margaret Stohl, it's hard to focus on anything but their immeasurable talent. Together they come across -- loud, brash, outspoken and opinionated. These two ladies skyrocketed to the top of charts, together and now separately. They earned their place in literary celebrity with hard work, time and energy well placed in others. Their social media lit up with encouragement for others, inspirational go-get-'em sayings and personal tidbits of what gets their writing revved up. It's a beautiful sight to behold, and so are they! Do hope that my introduction to them, if this time is your first time meeting them, comes across as awesome as it was for me. Such amazing ladies deserve a grand entrance, which is what I tried giving them with this write-up.<br />
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You know what the beginning of a beautiful friendship is?</div>
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Advocacy… no really that’s what it is. Trust me. Because if you haven’t heard the whole story of how Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl became a match made in literary heaven, then you are missing out on one heck of a good story.</div>
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Now if Margaret (Margo, Marg… Margie… take your pick) is to be believed, her daughter was the seventh demon spawn of the seventh generation of the seventh… just joking, only apparently Margaret’s daughter was misunderstood at school and only Kami knew how to champion her. I say that’s what good teachers do, isn’t it? Find students who need an advocate, someone who understands the battle they’re facing every day and gets up and fights for them. So if I sound a little enamored of Kami’s badassery, it’s because I am and because Margaret totally sells her that way.</div>
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In return, Margaret not only discovered a good teacher (Kami taught for 17 years.) but a lively, outspoken fangirl who would humor her. A die-hard Susan Cooper – <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Dark is Rising</em> Sequence fan, Margaret yearned for someone who got her deep-rooted love of sci-fi/fantasy and her need to meet, discuss and prank call Harrison Ford. (Yes, yes, Margaret admits to prank-calling Harrison Ford’s home. She also nearly brought me to tears when she began reciting from memory the prophecy from <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">the Dark is Rising</em> because that was the second book I mary-sued myself into… of course after <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Sherlock</em> – yes it’s always <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Sherlock</em> with me!)</div>
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These ladies fostered 11 years of friendship before they came full bloom into the publishing powerhouse of two they are now! And the rest is history as they say.</div>
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Mostly developed from a dare on Margaret’s precocious but brilliant daughter, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Beautiful Creatures</em> turned into a family affair that would span four books and a movie before these two ladies really grasped the magnitude of the Caster’s Chronicles. Sitting on looooong international flights gives one time to think and chat… Kami spent her birthday the year of <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Beautiful Creatures</em> [movie] release in Paris while Margaret would spend hers in Rome. These jet-setting ways gave them loads of time to gossip, and like every good writer knows, who best to talk about than the fictional characters you love. And so they did, again and again and made up more, newer stories and revisited characters who they suspected had so much more to tell and eventually… duh! It clicked and they realized while <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Beautiful Redemption</em> was the ending to just one portion of the Chronicles, they had a whole bunch of other characters just begging for a voice.<br />
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And so, to the relief of fans everywhere, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Dangerous Creatures</em> was born into existence – transitioning with two e-novellas… <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Dream Dark</em> and <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Dangerous Dream</em>. A new, funnier dynamic, but still steeped in the Caster world, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Dangerous Creatures </em>series will take place in different locations, the first in New York City and will feature all new supernatural creatures not known to readers before now.</div>
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This carefully constructed world – a supernatural existence – in the Caster Chronicles resides solely in the minds of Kami and Margaret. Together, they make up the rules that govern this world and try their hardest not to pull from familiar folklore or mythology. It gives their work the edge and originality they need so in the perfect balance of ‘them’ – a writing team so dynamic that they do not discuss much or worry about the deletions each other might make – they can be free to edit and create as they like. Margaret focused on the internal with Kami focused on the external. Ying and yang at its finest unless joking around and then Kami’s the murderer and Margaret is the feelings girl… but seriously… what book isn’t made of all the feels if it is good? And you cannot feel properly without the crap hitting the fan in some god-awful ways, yeah?!<br />
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These two partners-in-writing enjoy paying careful attention to character and plot. They choose to write commercial fiction, meaning they desire readers to want and fan their books whenever possible. The reactions secondary to the realization they’ve made their mark on someone – either it be hating or loving. Readers have felt something because of the words they have written. A dream each of them have long attained together.</div>
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So it shouldn’t come as a surprise, that these two authors pushed each other into fulfilling the dream of writing a novel. Yes, I said writing a novel, because as Margaret put it, they had not really written a novel… standalone. They’ve always written together and for some reason that didn’t count in her mind as actually writing a novel. It was too much fun and she had all the backup that an author doesn’t usually have when writing a novel on their own.</div>
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Kami wasn’t as sure of this endeavor, but as the two of them and friends are wont to do, Margaret demanded that if she had to write a standalone novel, that Kami should too. Not that they didn’t think either could do it; it was just a lot more added to their already busy schedules. However, mind made up, Margaret forged ahead and wrote <a href="http://theiconsseries.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Icons</em></a> which has already been optioned for a film [same people who did <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Beautiful Creatures</em> will be producing] and the second book, <i><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11861743-idols">Idols</a></i>, along with tackling Marvel's enigmatic <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23358109-black-widow">Black Widow</a>, all on her own. Kami followed along, more hesitant, but just as prolifically with <a href="http://thelegionseries.com/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">UnBreakable</em></a> (book 1 of the <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Legion</em> Series) and the second, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">UnMarked</em>, while getting to try her hand on her own with just as revered character from the silver screen. <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29244700-the-x-files">Agent Mulder</a> from the <i>X-Files</i> gets a YA make-over from <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27414434-the-lovely-reckless">The Lovely Reckless</a></i> author.</div>
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Together, I do believe these two ladies are UnStoppable (pardon the pun). But then again, friends… friends should advocate for each other and most people are lucky to have friendships around 10 years of age, much less the 20+ years these two have together. Even fewer, are the people who can say with certainty my life has been made all the better with you in it.</div>
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So yeah, do Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl have the best of both worlds… they do and then some… they have the best of worlds… of their own-making.</div>
Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-69562544694759616582016-07-02T15:43:00.001-04:002016-07-05T07:09:37.876-04:00BOOK REVIEW: Tell the Wind and Fire by Sarah Rees Brennan<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #545353; font-family: Lora; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.8; margin-bottom: 25px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #606060; line-height: 18px;"><b>DETAILS:</b></span></span></div>
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<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Title: <i>Tell the Wind and Fire</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publisher: </b>Clarion Books</span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Publishing date: </b>April 5, 2016</span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="color: #606060;">Author(s): <a href="http://sarahreesbrennan.com/"><span style="color: #993322;">S</span>arah Rees Brennan</a></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Series: <i>Standalone</i></b></span></li>
<li style="border: none; color: #606060; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Rating:<i> </i>Going Bananas! </b></span></li>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Quote Me:</span></span> A romanticized, modern gothic tale of light versus dark that finds inspiration in a <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Tale of Two Cities</em> by Charles Dickens. <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Tell the Wind and Fire</em> is masterfully told in multiple POVs. The magical mayhem stirred up requires no previous knowledge of the classic it is based upon, but needs readers to have a heart for the voiceless. This story offers a poignant look at what happens when people attempt being the change in the world without calling upon mercy, integrity and justice in tandem.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Synopsis:</span></span><br />
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #6f6f6f; line-height: inherit; text-align: center;">“Sarah Rees Brennan writes with fine control and wit, and I suspect that word of this magical thriller will pass through the populace with the energy of wind, of fire.”</em><span style="color: #6f6f6f; text-align: center;"> —</span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #6f6f6f; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; text-align: center;">Gregory Maguire</span><span style="color: #6f6f6f; text-align: center;">, author of </span><em style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #6f6f6f; line-height: inherit; text-align: center;">Wicked</em><span style="color: #6f6f6f; text-align: center;">In a city divided between opulent luxury in the Light and fierce privations in the Dark, a determined young woman survives by guarding her secrets.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #6f6f6f; text-align: center;">Lucie Manette was born in the Dark half of the city, but careful manipulations won her a home in the Light, celebrity status, and a rich, loving boyfriend. Now she just wants to keep her head down, but her boyfriend has a dark secret of his own—one involving an apparent stranger who is destitute and despised. Lucie alone knows the young men’s deadly connection, and even as the knowledge leads her to make a grave mistake, she can trust no one with the truth.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #6f6f6f; text-align: center;">Blood and secrets alike spill out when revolution erupts. With both halves of the city burning, and mercy nowhere to be found, can Lucie save either boy—or herself?</span></div>
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DISCOVER IT: <a href="http://sarahreesbrennan.com/books/tell-the-wind-and-fire/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Tell the Wind and Fire</em></a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tell-Wind-Fire-Sarah-Brennan/dp/054431817X" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tell-the-wind-and-fire-sarah-rees-brennan/1122302066" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">B&N</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16221851-tell-the-wind-and-fire" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">What Stood Out:</span></span> In appreciation of the spirit of Charles Dickens, <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">Tell the Wind and Fire</em> pulls out all the emotional stops. The have and have nots go at it, but the morality of who has the higher ground gets confused because humanity never sleeps. When humans strive to better themselves, without relying on the good to be found in the world, no one can make a difference. Instead they focus on revenge, hate and getting back at those who have held the keys to their imprisonment. Granted everyone probably in some time of their lives ends up on the victim end of things in this world, however, we must rise above it all, and find it in ourselves to fight back without hurting others in the process.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">What I Liked:</span></span> The fine line between who is right and who is wrong here cannot be demarcated. Such a hard concept to grasp when things seem so black and white. It is what stands out, but also, makes this story feel heartbreakingly realistic. The romance crippled by people being more or less than what they seem. And even if you haven’t read <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">A Tale of Two Cities</em>, Brennan gives a modern feel to the old world spirit imbibed by this gothic, modern thriller. Lucia deserves our attention, for us to root for her because she alone sees everyone for their potential to change and be changed for the better… well… until she doesn’t. Her learned lesson hauntingly stuck with me.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">Would this book work as a movie?</span></span> Do you need to even ask me?! The imagery of the two worlds, and the magical cages to torture and kill prisoners of war will stick with me. Vivid and larger than life, both Ethan and Carwyn, would make a stark contrast with Lucie’s golden self onscreen. And the societal warning to not be governed by your emotions when meting out social justice rings true and something that could do a world of good for those who take the time to listen.</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">What I Did Not Like:</span></span> Omigosh, Brennan tries to ruin me for cupcakes! Not in all seriousness… because for real, who doesn’t like cupcakes even if they pull up memories of fictional characters sharing a cupcake as if it is their last moment in time to be happy?!</div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: maroon;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit;">About Sarah Rees Brennan:</span></span></div>
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Born and raised in Ireland by the sea, where her teachers valiantly tried to make her fluent in Irish (she wants you to know it’s not called Gaelic) but she chose to read books under her desk in class instead. The books most often found under her desk were Jane Austen, Margaret Mahy, Anthony Trollope, Robin McKinley and Diana Wynne Jones, and she still loves them all today.</div>
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After college she lived briefly in New York and somehow survived in spite of her habit of hitching lifts in fire engines. She began working on <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">The Demon’s Lexicon</em>while doing a Creative Writing MA and library work in Surrey, England. Since then she has returned to Ireland to write and use as a home base for future adventures. Her Irish is still woeful, but she feels the books under the desk were worth it.</div>
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<a href="http://sarahreesbrennan.com/blog/" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Website</a> ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/sarahreesbrenna" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/836009.Sarah_Rees_Brennan" style="-webkit-transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1); box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef2673; line-height: inherit; outline: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: all 1s cubic-bezier(0.165, 0.84, 0.44, 1);">Goodreads</a></div>
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Perpetual New Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03503229575558686922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-21278547369838471372016-05-10T22:36:00.000-04:002016-07-13T17:14:49.137-04:00#TopTenTuesday: Websites That Aren't Strictly Bookish<div style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, utopia, 'palatino linotype', palatino, serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">Thanks to the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/" style="color: #cc3300; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Broke and the Bookish</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"> for hosting.</span></div>
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Today, this post is going up a bit late and after everyone has probably read the lists they're most attracted by. However, I am jumping back into the this blogging business on my own again. Which means, making the most of these kind of memes. In trying to keep with a bookish theme, I modified today's Top Ten Tuesday so that all the sites I listed feature literary gifts, but aren't necessarily sites that sell books. Most of them though, are hoping to capture a bibliophile's attention.</div>
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<span style="color: #333333;">#1 --> <i><a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/Gadget4Entertainment?ref=l2-shopheader-name">GADGET4ENTERTAINMENT</a> </i>has gorgeous jewelry relating to fandom, even bookish fandom! </span><br />
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#2 --> <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/NovellyYours?ref=shop_sugg">NOVELLYYOURS</a> -- Who doesn't like candles, especially soy ones that burn clean and are meant to remind you of your favorite literary characters?<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">#3 --> <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/BoeTech?ref=l2-shopheader-name">BOETECH</a> cookie cutters feature cutters in a delightful Jane Austen shape, but of course, this 221B cutter is my favorite. I used it a lot along with the TARDIS one a lot this Christmas holiday!!!</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;">#4 --> <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/268009797/write-drunk-edit-sober-mug-hemingway?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=literary%20mugs&ref=sr_gallery_9">WILLOWandOLIVE</a> have a mug I want so badly and have not found the excess cash to purchase yet. How adorable though is this mug. They have framed prints too.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;">#5 --> Granted most of <a href="http://www.hottopic.com/">HOT TOPIC</a> merch that is literary isn't because of bookish fandom, but a derivative of its on-screen incarnations. Still counts though. I love this store for its varied sizes and excellent sales.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;">#6 --> <a href="https://society6.com/product/sherlock-pob_pillow#25=193&18=126">SOCIETY6</a> fits into home decor and everything else. An amazing array of creative talent in fandom, you probably can find anything you want here.</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">#7 --> Whenever I cannot find something that is so patently bookish in nature, usually I have good luck finding it on <a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/more?id=6629321957487">BOOKSAMILLION (BAM) </a>for a good deal. They have a rewards program that really pays off and a great array of signed novels too.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">#8 --> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/bookstagram/">I</a>NSTAGRAM apparently is the place to be, and I had no idea until </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">participating in Bookish photo challenges put on by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lisa_lostinlit/">Lisa_LostinLit</a> and<a href="https://www.instagram.com/lostinlit_becca/"> LostinLit_Becca</a>. Too much of my time lately has been gawping at the amazing #bookstagram posts.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;">#9 --> <a href="http://www.adagio.com/signature_blend/blend.html?blend=19182">ADAGIO TEAS</a> eats my brain whenever I am on that site. I do love the cashback rewards I can get using certain credit cards at this site since inevitably I end up buying some of these for Christmas presents and Birthday presents and just for me presents. Some days you need to treat yourself, right?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">ALL PHOTOS used for the purpose of simply giving readers a quick peek into the sites being fangirled here. If you would like me to remove the photo, please just ask. I am using these photos with the sole purpose of sharing my adoration for these sites, with no commercial intent.</span></span></div>
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Also, interested in following me and don't where I am?</h4>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/sabriel25">Twitter</a> ~ <a href="https://www.instagram.com/sabriel75/">Instagram</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/beth.beth.7121">Facebook</a></div>
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perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2462635747209874096.post-78902479028001297062016-02-24T12:19:00.000-05:002016-03-04T10:01:48.245-05:00"The May Queen Murders" by Sarah JudeSo <span style="color: purple;"><i><a href="http://midnightsocietytales.com/">The Midnight Society</a></i></span> has put together a fun Wednesday thing to do on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month. Fans of all things spooky get to pull out the weird, the freaky, the frightening and all things scary even though it isn't Halloween.<br />
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Who says horror must be contained to one month?! Not I... nor Sarah Jude. Her book, <i><span style="color: magenta;"><b>The May Queen Murders</b></span></i> - coming this May, is a perfect way to for me to participate. I cannot talk enough about how horrifically good <b><i><span style="color: magenta;">The May Queen Murders</span></i></b> is.<br />
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Just look at these jpegs... are they getting you in the mood?<br />
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If that's not scary ominous to you... how about this synopsis:</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Title: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">May Queen Murders<o:p></o:p></i></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-size: 14.0pt;">Pages:</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-size: 14.0pt;"> Hardcover, 304 pages<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-size: 14.0pt;">Release Date:</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-size: 14.0pt;"> May 3rd 2016 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-size: 14.0pt;">Publisher:</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-size: 14.0pt;"> HMH Books for Young
Readers</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;">Stay on the roads.
Don’t enter the woods. Never go out at night.</span></i><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;">Those are the rules in
Rowan’s Glen, a remote farming community in the Missouri Ozarks where Ivy
Templeton’s family has lived for centuries. It’s an old-fashioned way of life,
full of superstition and traditions, and sixteen-year-old Ivy loves it. The
other kids at school may think the Glen kids are weird, but Ivy doesn’t
care—she has her cousin Heather as her best friend. The two girls share
everything with each other—or so Ivy thinks. When Heather goes missing after a
May Day celebration, Ivy discovers that both her best friend and her beloved
hometown are as full of secrets as the woods that surround them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25897757-the-may-queen-murders"><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;">Goodreads</span></a><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"> | </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0544640411/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0544640411&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2"><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;">Amazon</span></a><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"> | </span><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-may-queen-murders-sarah-jude/1122302042;jsessionid=EB13A5582262AF55FACD6B3EEC951091.prodny_store02-atgap02?ean=9780544640412&st=AFF&2sid=Goodreads,%20Inc_2227948_NA&sourceId=AFFGoodreads,%20IncM000027"><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;">B&N</span></a><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"> | </span><a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780544640412"><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;">IndieBound</span></a><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;">About Sarah Jude:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;">Sarah Jude lives by
the woods and has an owl that lands on her chimney every night. She grew up
believing you had to hold your breath whenever you passed a graveyard or a
bridge spanning water. Now she writes about cemeteries, murder, and ghostly
apparitions. She resides in Missouri with her husband, three children, and
three dogs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://sarahjude.com/"><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;">Website</span></a><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"> | </span><a href="https://twitter.com/SarahEJude"><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.0pt;"> | </span><span style="font-family: Merriweather-Regular; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Merriweather-Regular;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/sarah.jude/">Instagram</a></span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 14.0pt;">The May Queen Murders</span></i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;"> by Sarah Jude easily fits into the overlapping worlds of
horror, suspense and romance. More freaky than gore, it’s not the usual
fright-fest and instead pulls from Ozark lore that builds in tension as the
secrets of traditions are unearthed. Satisfyingly spooky, </span><i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 14.0pt;">The May Queen Murders</span></i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;"> pulls
readers into a maze of what ifs and whodunit while developing a diverse lot of
suspicious characters. An </span><a href="http://www.alan-ya.org/alan-picks-jan-2016/"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">ALAN
January pick</span></a><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;"> along with a </span><a href="http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-544-64041-2"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">starred review</span></a><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;"> from </span><i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 14.0pt;">Publisher’s Weekly</span></i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "droidserif"; font-size: 14.0pt;">, this
novel should please fans of multiple genres and ages.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBR2YSz7OfJ1ze8wtH7WiXaTvYcb_beNdsxpUPBmcKlgjpK8Tdf-OVIYq9fgUNYlkJJ2TYeMM-mqhVZOI8nyIY2BckTNbSxzCbuoXEBtL9M5BvFCWRSnKUiN3NtyFngi36gJpdqsPbl1zV/s1600/MQMSocialMediaPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBR2YSz7OfJ1ze8wtH7WiXaTvYcb_beNdsxpUPBmcKlgjpK8Tdf-OVIYq9fgUNYlkJJ2TYeMM-mqhVZOI8nyIY2BckTNbSxzCbuoXEBtL9M5BvFCWRSnKUiN3NtyFngi36gJpdqsPbl1zV/s320/MQMSocialMediaPhoto.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Need to know more about this book? Find out more about Sarah Jude and her inspiration? Check out these blogs for exclusive content, because you know <b><i><span style="color: magenta;">The May Queen Murders</span></i></b> is not a story you want to miss out on. </div>
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<i>Fangirlish</i>: </div>
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<a href="http://fangirlish.com/the-may-queen-murders-sarah-jude-fangirls-some-of-our-fave-authors/">Sarah Jude fangirls over authors fangirlish favorites</a></div>
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<a href="http://fangirlish.com/cover-reveal-exclusive-the-may-queen-murders-by-sarahejude/">Cover Reveal Exclusive: The May Queen Murders</a></div>
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<i>Lady Reader's Net:</i></div>
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<a href="http://www.ladyreader.net/2016/02/the-may-queen-murders-by-sarah-jude.html">Promo Post on Sarah Jude's The May Queen Murders</a><br />
<br />
<i>Pixie Vixen Book Reviews:</i><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.pixievixen.blogspot.com/2016/03/the-may-queen-murders-by-sarah-jude.html">The May Queen Murders Review & Exclusive Interview</a><br />
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Don't forget to participate in <b><i><span style="color: purple;">The Midnight Society</span></i></b>'s #spookyallyear #bloghop <a href="http://midnightsocietytales.com/">HERE</a>.</div>
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<br />perpetual new girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08777937766501783568noreply@blogger.com2