Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz Review

Hey readers and a very happy Sunday to you all! I have been hard at work to get some reviews done for you guys, but I've had some distractions. Some distractions like oh, a new job, moving across the state, MY BIRTHDAY, ya know, some distractions... So I haven't been on my A game! Plus, if you guys haven't heard I co-hosted this amazing Halloween Author Invasion last week... Yeah, it's been a busy few weeks for me! BUT, alas, here I am and ready to share with you guys another awesome review! Hope you guys are ready, because this one was a very special read that came to me highly recommended by an even more special friend. You guys know her as the amazing Christina Marie, YouTube sensation and blogger extraordinaire from LuLo Fangirl! Anyway, this read is one of her ALL TIME favorites and after hearing her rave about it, I knew I had to check it out! This time on the chopping block? Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz! Here's a bit about the novel and the author before we get to my thoughts!

A lyrical novel about family and friendship from critically acclaimed author Benjamin Alire Sáenz.

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Benjamin Alire Sáenz is an author of poetry and prose for adults and teens. He is the winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award and the American Book Award for his books for adults. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe was a Printz Honor Book, the Stonewall Award winner, the Pura Belpre Award winner, the Lambda Literary Award winner, and a finalist for the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award. His first novel for teens, Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood, was an ALA Top Ten Book for Young Adults and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His second book for teens, He Forgot to Say Goodbye, won the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award, the Southwest Book Award, and was named a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. He teaches creative writing at the University of Texas, El Paso.

GOODREADS | TWITTER | WEBSITE

Check out this fan-made trailer for the novel before we get to my thoughts!

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My Thoughts: 

Every time I bring up my favorite books of the year, my very awesome and dear friend Christina has mentioned this read to me. She has never flat out recommended it to me because she didn’t want to push it off on me, but she definitely hinted that I should check this out. A few weeks ago I was in a bit of a reading slump and needed something to pull me out. Christina put the bug in my ear once more and I purchased an e-copy of Aristotle and Dante on the spot! I honestly didn’t know anything about this read going into it, so I really did not know what to expect. All I had was Christina’s word that this was one of her favorite books! I should have known this one was going to be a special read! Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (henceforth referred to as simple A&D), definitely blew me away and has definitely also made my embarrassingly long list of favorite reads! This was my first adventure into the mind of Benjamin Alire Saenz and after this read, I know it won’t be my last!

First off, the dedication. The dedication? Yeah, you read that right. I have to say that I am not one of those people who reads a book and finds a way to connect with a character every time. That’s just not how I roll for the most part. This book, however, had me connecting to all the characters and every situation. I couldn’t believe the book spoke to me the way it did. At one point in the novel, I somehow pushed a button and was taken to the dedication page, then I understood why this book was so special to me. The dedication reads: To all the boys who’ve had to learn to play by different rules. Yep. So much yes. How awesome to see a Young Adult contemporary novel not only about the lives of two males, but dedicated to males everywhere? That’s amazing in my books. Especially as a male blogger. It’s really difficult to find authors who can relate to their male readers, much less dedicate a book to them. That single sentence spoke volumes to me about our author, Alire Saenz. 

The setting. First off, I will go ahead and say that books set in the past usually are hit and miss for me. Especially “modern-ish” time stuff. Don’t get me wrong, Historic Fiction is one of my absolute favorite genres, but stuff that is set anytime in the past 50 years usually causes me to give a big eye roll. This one proved me wrong! A&D takes place in 1987 Texas. Strange right? Well, I have to say this worked for me WAY better than I ever imagined. Maybe it’s because I was born not too long after this, but I could definitely relate to a time before technology. A time when things were much simpler than they are today! I often wonder what teenagers did before the internet, what they did to kill time after school, what life was like, in generally for teenagers before my time. This read gave EXCELLENT insight to just how similar all teenagers are, regardless of the time period or the geographic location!

The characters. Okay, this is kind of an unfair category. As a YA contemporary, this entire book was about the character development. I can’t really say all that much without giving away huge plot spoilers, so I will try to be as vague as possible. I will just start out by saying that I am not sure I have EVER read a book in this genre with such amazing character development. Our main characters of Aristotle and Dante were two of the most well written male characters I have ever read. On an individual level, I will go ahead and say I really liked Ari (our narrator) a WHOLE lot more than Dante. Ari really resonated with me, I don’t know why specifically, but I could really relate to Ari at times. Dante on the other hand, while still REALLY awesome, kind of got on my nerves at times. I do believe that was the point though. He is very… different. He talks too much (like myself), and really makes it a point to make Ari uncomfortable and awkward at times, although he doesn’t realize he does it. I have friends that are a lot like Dante so I totally know what Ari was going through. When it comes to the friendship between these two characters, I was really amazing at how well written it was. It was genuine and really refreshing to read about a male friendship in a literary genre generally dominated by females. Now there were a few major points in Ari and Dante’s story that I could NOT relate to, but I still LOVED reading it all. Seriously, their stories really touched me. I haven’t finished a book with feelings like this in a long time. So funny how characters can do that. Ari is awesome. End of story. Dante is great too, but together as one team they really make the story enjoyable. It’s so great to see how characters can really be like two different puzzle pieces, but in the end they need to be looked at holistically to really understand how awesome their journey to “discover the secrets of the universe” really was! Another amazing set of characters I LOVED reading were both Ari and Dante’s parents. Man, seriously I was laughing out loud SO much at the things they would say. They truly were the coolest and best written parents I have probably EVER read in a novel. It was so cool to read a book where the parents played a big part of the storyline. There are so many times I read a book and say “where are the parents here?”, but not this time. The parents play just as important role in the story as our two main characters. It is under their guidance that Ari and Dante really come into their own and mature/develop. 

On the topic of laughing out loud, can we talk about how funny this book was? I found myself laughing out loud so many times during this read. These boys were hilarious. For instance, at one point Ari and his mother are referring to their dog and Ari narrates, “The dog thing was a joke. We didn’t have one…” and most people would probably be like “uh… okay?”, but I was cracking up! I’ve never really based a book rating on its emotional factor, but if I was to do that with A&D, it would be a perfect rating, no questions asked. One minute I was laughing my face off, the next I was so mad my blood was boiling, then the next, I was crying alongside our characters. You want to talk about an emotional roller coaster? Read THIS book!

I had so many highlights of amazing quotes in this novel that really added to all the points I have mentioned previously, some of the ones that really touched me were:

• “Yeah, I had all kinds of tragic reasons for feeling sorry for myself. Being fifteen didn’t help. Sometimes I thought that being fifteen was the worse tragedy of them all…” Heard that, being 15 is rough!

• “I had a rule that it was better to be bored by yourself than to be bored with someone else. I pretty much lived by that rule. Maybe that’s why I didn’t have any friends.” Again, was this book written just for me? Because I pretty much live by that philosophy!

• “I didn’t understand how you could live in a mean world and not have any of that meanness rub off on you. How could a guy live without some meanness?” This was such an interesting quote.

• “Maybe I was a little superior. But I didn’t think I was superior. I just didn’t understand how to talk to them, how to be myself around them. Being around other guys didn’t make me feel smarter. Being around guys made me feel stupid and inadequate. It was like they were all a part of this club and I wasn’t a member.” I seriously can relate to this SO well. Maybe it just spoke to me because in this sense I am so much like our narrator. I have always had more female friends than male friend, just because, like Ari, I had a hard time relating to the plight of the average teenage male. I’ve always felt like an old soul!

• “You can’t expect to go both ways when you’re driving on a one-way street.” Truth. For so many reasons.

• “Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer morning could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder.” You never know what life is going to throw at you next, live in the moment!

 

So that’s a bunch of quotes, but seriously, I have probably 20 more that I DIDN’T share. 

In the end, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe ended up being one of my new favorite books. Not just of the year, but ever. It spoke to me in so many ways. Although I will say that I did not expect the ending to happen like it did, and one part of the novel was a little uncomfortable for me to read, neither of those things made me dislike the novel in any capacity! I really liked that I didn’t know what I was getting myself into at all. It was really a trip down the rabbit hole for me and I had no idea where it would end. It was refreshing, enjoyable, and life-changing. Well… maybe not life “changing”, but definitely amazing nonetheless. All-in-all I am granting Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe a perfect 5+-star review! I highly recommend this novel to any reader (YA and up). In fact, I think everyone should read it. It really touches on a lot of issues that are just as relevant nearly 30 years later as they were in 1987! I don’t think anyone who takes the time to invest into this read will be disappointed in the end. In fact, I’d even say it may change you for the better!

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Alright everyone, that is all I have for you on the topic of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz. I don't know what else to say except that this was one of the best books I have read all year! Have you guys read this incredible novel? Let me know what you thought in the comments! What about Saenz's other works? Anyone familiar with them? I am anxious to read more from this incredible author! Thanks so much for stopping by to read my thoughts! Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan

Dust by Sarah Daltry Book Blitz

Hey everyone and HAPPY FRIDAY! I hope you guys are all having a great week and are ready for an awesome weekend! Before you get to partying too hard, I have an awesome book blitz for you guys. This time we're promoting Dust by Sarah Daltry! Check it out:

Dust by Sarah Daltry
Publication date: November 7th 2014
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Who makes YOUR choices?

“I was once the type of person who was impressed by starlight; the type of person who would dance beneath glass ceilings and let the world swim in its loveliness. The sky reminds me of the parties we used to throw – parties like the one last night. The memories bring back the trill of harps and endless ripples of satisfied laughter. Now, though, when I try to recall what I felt, all I hear is screaming.”
In a world ravaged by war and oppressive forces of evil, a princess must fight to claim her bloodright and save her people.
When the princess, Alondra, falls for the beautiful, blue eyes of a hooded stranger, it awakens in her a taste for freedom and an escape from her duty.
But her parents have other plans; they have a kingdom to protect and Alondra must marry to ensure the peace between nations. Only what happens when your parents choose a cold-hearted assassin as your betrothed?
As lies, illusions, and long hidden vendettas surface, the princess has to confront a very secret history. One that makes her realize that she not only risks losing her liberty, but also everything she has known and loved.

Sarah Daltry

Sarah Daltry is a varied author, known best for the contemporary New Adult series, 'Flowering', a six-title series that explores the complexities of relationships, including how we survive the damage from our pasts with the support of those who love us. Although the books are no longer in print, they are being rewritten and redeveloped for future publication. Please visit Sarah's website for more details.

As a former English teacher and YA library coordinator, Sarah has always loved Young Adult literature and 'Dust', an epic fantasy novel where romance blends with the blood and grit of war, is her second official foray into YA, following the gamer geek romantic comedy, 'Backward Compatible'. Most of Sarah's work is about teens and college students, as it's what she knows well.
Sarah's passion in life is writing - weaving tales of magic and beauty. The modern and vast social networking world is an alternative universe that she makes infrequent trips to, but when she does, readers will find her attentive, friendly and happy to discuss the magic of stories and reading. Please stop by and say hello anywhere Sarah is online! You can find these places at http://sarahdaltry.com

Sarah has moved back and forth between independent and traditional publishing. Her first novel, 'Bitter Fruits', is with Escape, an imprint of Harlequin Australia, and she signed with Little Bird Publishing in the spring of 2014.
Sarah has also written 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,' a reimagining of one of her favorite poems in a contemporary setting.
She is an obsessive Anglophile who spends more time watching BBC TV than any human being should, as well as a hardcore gamer and sarcastic nerd.

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS

Interview with Sarah Daltry!

                                          *Interview supplied by XPresso Book Tours*

What is the most important thing you have learned since becoming an author?

You need to write for yourself. It's hard for me, because I love books and I love to read anything, so I guess I naively used to believe everyone was like that. It took me a while to put it all together and figure out what was most important to me and what that meant for me as an author.

Is there one subject you would never write about as an author? What is it?

I can't redeem characters who abuse other people or animals. A character who sexually assaults someone or bullies them or beats them will never deserve redemption in my eyes. There's a line and I am a fan of complicated characters, but once you abuse another person for your own benefit, you don't earn the right to be redeemed. And I absolutely will never make that abuser a love interest.

What do you consider to be your best accomplishment?

My Gamerscore? :D

You write across many genres, from fantasy, to comedy, is there a genre you prefer not to write in?

Not really. I used to write romance, but when I think of romance I like, I think of books like those by Simone Elkeles or Jenny Han or even Danielle Steel (at least when I used to read her books 20 years ago). However, I've never enjoyed the "Fabio romances," and when I wrote romance, I wanted to write love stories about real people. I don't think the escapism that people prefer in romance and my style of writing mesh well, so generally, I think romance is something I'm going to put aside.

Do you remember the very first book you read on your own? What was it?

I don't really, because I remember reading before anything else. I don't have a lot of memories of my childhood and I loved The Velveteen Rabbit and the Little House series, but I don't remember what I read first on my own.

What is the hardest thing about writing?

Trusting yourself. It's incredibly difficult for me to have faith in my work, because I don't have a lot of faith in myself as a person. I tend to hate everything I write and I have very loud inner critical voices that never go away.

What is your favorite quote?

"Everyone who isn't us is an enemy." - Cersei from Game of Thrones for two reasons: 1. I think she's awesome and 2. it says a lot about how empathy really works in the world. Eventually, if it comes down to ourselves or anyone else, most people choose themselves.

What advice would you give the younger you?

None of it matters, so do what you want to do. You can't please anyone, not really, and it's the only life you have. I spent a lot of my life trying to make everybody else happy, but in the end, it wasn't enough and no one really was.

What is the easiest thing about writing?

I like the escape into another person's life and to be able to put into words the ways of the world.

As the author of YA novels with strong female protagonists is there anything you would like to say young girls who would be reading your novels?
To quote Cersei again, "Everywhere in the world, they hurt little girls." Let's make a world where they don't.

Growing up who were your role models?

My grandfather, my high school English teacher, Holden Caulfield, Jane Eyre, Eponine in Les Miserables

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Alright everyone, that's all I have for you on the topic of Dust by Sarah Daltry! Sound like the book for you? Check out more about the book by clicking on any of the links below! Thanks so much for stopping by and, as always, thanks to Giselle and the team at XPresso Book Tours for allowing me to participate! Until next time, Happy Reading!
-Ethan   

MELT by Selene Castrovilla Release Day Launch

Happy Book Birthday to Selene Castrovilla's MELT! Many thanks to all of the wonderful readers and bloggers that are participating in the Release Day Launch today. Check out the book's details and teaser, and be sure to enter the giveaway below!

MELT is a brutal love story set against the metaphorical backdrop of The Wizard of Oz (not a retelling). When sixteen year old Dorothy moves to the small town of Highland Park, she meets, and falls for Joey – a “bad boy” who tells no one about the catastrophic domestic violence he witnesses at home. Can these two lovers survive peer pressure, Joey’s reputation, and his alcoholism? Told in dual first person, Joey's words are scattered on the page - reflecting his broken state. Dorothy is the voice of reason - until something so shattering happens that she, too, may lose her grip. Can their love endure, or will it melt away? MELT is based on true events. It is both a chilling tale of abuse, and a timeless romance. It will hit you like a punch in the face, and also seep through the cracks in your soul.

Goodreads | Amazon

#MELTdown

For the past month leading up to the release of MELT, Selene Castrovilla has shared a fantastic MELTdown post every day on her blog! In these posts she's shared tidbits of "insider information” about MELT: its content, its inspiration and her writing process... including excerpts! The first post is HERE, and you use the post navigation at the bottom of the page to click through and read them. Enjoy!

Join us for MELT's Online Launch Party!

You’ve invited to celebrate the release of Selene Castrovilla’s MELT at her Facebook Launch Party on November 9, 2014. The party will be from 5:00 – 11:00 PM EST, so we hope you’ll stop by! There will be prizes, and very special guests: Beth Fehlbaum, Gae Polisner, Cassie Shine, and Kathy Cannon Weichman. We hope to see you there!

[RSVP Here]

 

About the Author

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Goodreads

Selene Castrovilla is an award-winning teen and children’s author who believes that through all trends, humanity remains at the core of literature. She is the author of Saved By the Music and The Girl Next Door, teen novels originally published by WestSide Books and now available digitally through ASD Publishing. Her third children’s book with Calkins Creek Books, Revolutionary Friends, was released in April 2013. She is also a contributing author to UncommonYA. Selene holds an MFA in creative writing from New School University and a BA in English from New York University. She lives on Long Island with her two sons. Visit her website www.SeleneCastrovilla.com for book excerpts and more information!

Giveaway

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You guys will all be excited to know that I am also on the upcoming blog tour for MELT where I will share my thoughts on the novel as well as an exclusive interview with the author, Mrs. Selene Castrovilla! Be sure to come back and check that out! Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan

The Elementalist by Melissa J. Cunningham Cover Reveal

COVER REVEAL: THE ELEMENTALIST 

by Melissa J. Cunningham

Series: The Ransomed Souls (Book 2)

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance

Release Date: February 3, 2015

Publisher: Clean Teen Publishing

Deceased Alisa Callahan thinks nothing could be worse than watching the boy she loves move on in his life without her… until she is ripped from her less-than-peaceful existence in Elysium to be trapped… in someone’s else’s body.

Seventeen-year-old Claire Balister wants only one thing. To master the art of Elementalism. To accomplish this, she must to learn to control a damned soul. Her old classmate and suicide victim, Alisa Callahan, is the perfect candidate. But when the spell goes wrong, Claire finds herself in the worst possible situation… sharing her body with an unwanted guest.

Everything swirls out of control when Alisa learns her entrapment is all part of a set-up, an elaborate scheme to keep her out of the way while demons take over the realm of Idir Shaol. Her only hope rests with a boy who can’t remember her, his past, or more importantly, who he really is…

One of the bad guys.

The Elementalist is the much anticipated sequel to Reluctant Guardian.

DON'T FORGET TO ADD THE ELEMENTALIST TO YOUR GOODREADS LIST! 

READ THE FIRST BOOK TODAY! 

(FREE for Kindle Unlimited Customers!) 

Guarding Brecken Shaefer—a dark and dangerous rebel—is harder than it looks. 

Death was nothing like sixteen-year-old Alisa Callahan thought it would be. Resting on pink, fluffy clouds for eternity with her gram and best friend sounded like a dream come true. After all, enduring one torturous experience after another in her short life deserved some kind of reward, right? Unfortunately, eternal rewards aren't given out so freely when you take your own life.

Required to pay the debt for committing suicide, Alisa must become a guardian. It sounds easy enough, but not when the boy she is forced to protect has a dangerous secret and wants absolutely nothing to do with her.

Brecken Shaefer isn't any normal teenager. He has special gifts that are sure to make Alisa's afterlife miserable. When feelings develop between them, everything spins out of control. Not only must Alisa face her own demons— but to protect Brecken, she must face an evil so heinous that it threatens to destroy their souls completely.

Alisa is tired of hiding from her past. When the easiest thing to do is run, can Brecken give her the strength to stay? 

About Melissa J. Cunningham

Melissa's first novel: Reluctant Guardian, was accepted for publication through Clean Teen Publishing in August 2013. When Melissa is not writing you can find her spending time with her husband of eighteen years and her five children. Melissa studied music in college and loves to read all things fiction. Melissa lives in Northern Utah with her family, her horses, cats, dogs and chickens. 

Melissa's first novel: Reluctant Guardian, was accepted for publication through Clean Teen Publishing in August 2013. When Melissa is not writing you can find her spending time with her husband of eighteen years and her five children. Melissa studied music in college and loves to read all things fiction. Melissa lives in Northern Utah with her family, her horses, cats, dogs and chickens. 

Want to READ MORE from Clean Teen Publishing?

Check out our huge selection of amazing reads! There's sure to be something for every reader!

Stolen Moon by Kimber Leigh Wheaton Blog Tour: Review + GIVEAWAY

Hey everyone! Happy Thursday and welcome one and all to my tour stop for Stolen Moon by Kimber Leigh Wheaton. Here on the stop today I will be featuring my thoughts on this incredible second outing in the Light Chronicles series, as well as hosting an awesome giveaway! Before we get to my thoughts, here's a bit about the book and our author:

Stolen Moon by Kimber Leigh Wheaton
(Light Chronicles #2)
Publication date: August 19th 2014
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult

Katarina ~ a Royal Knight bound by honor and duty who steals a powerful relic from a sorcerer in a desperate attempt to save her kingdom from the clutches of a madman.

Ethan ~ a mercenary leader trapped between his growing attraction to Katarina and his responsibility to protect his friends from the evil pursuing her.

Zebulon ~ a malicious sorcerer waging war as though it’s a game, caring nothing for the lives he destroys in his quest for power.
Drawn together by a moonstone medallion—an indestructible relic with immense magical power.

Katarina steals the medallion from Zebulon and flees in the dead of night. Together with Ethan and his mercenaries, she struggles to stay one step ahead of the sorcerer and his minions in a race against time to save her homeland. Fierce battles, ravenous monsters, and bloodthirsty brigands—those are no surprise. But Katarina never dreamed her greatest obstacle could be falling in love.

Kimber Leigh Wheaton

Kimber Leigh Wheaton is a YA/NA author with a soft spot for sweet romance and is a member of Romance Writers of America.

She is married to her soul mate, has a teenage son, and shares her home with three dogs and four cats. No, she doesn’t live on a farm, she just loves animals. Her house is filled with dragons, though she does lament that they are the porcelain, non-flying variety.

Kimber Leigh is addicted to romance, videogames, superheroes, villains, and chocolate—not necessarily in that order. (If she has to choose, she’ll take a chocolate covered superhero!)

Her debut novel, Shadow Fire, is the first book in the Light Chronicles series. Watch for book two, Stolen Moon, a standalone sequel, coming August 2014.

Find Kimber Leigh Wheaton

FACEBOOK | TWITTER | WEBSITE | GOODREADS

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My Thoughts:

A few months ago, I was blessed enough to be chosen to review Shadow Fire (book one in this series) for its' blog tour. I was a little skeptical, as I hadn't been having much luck with the fantasy genre before I picked it up. Long story short (you can read my review of Shadow Fire by clicking here), I fell in love with Shadow Fire from the very first page. It didn't take long for me to decide that I had to get my hands on book two ASAP! Although I took a bit of a break between books, I was still just as excited to start this one!

Stolen Moon tells the stories of Katarina and Ethan in their adventure to take down the evil Zebulon! In terms of the plot, it does kind of read a little but like Shadow Fire, but the characters were different enough that the story really was its' own.

I guess I will start out with the plot this time. The plot to this one was actually a whole lot deeper than that of the first novel. This second outing had so much... more? Dare I say. More emotion, more love, more rage, just so much.. more! For instance, in book one Ashlyn had a pretty sad story, being chosen to save her village from evil forces and leaving her family behind to face the dangers of the unknown, right? Well... That's nothing compared to Katarina's family killing themselves to prevent being captured and sold as sex slaves, while Katarina was fighting from being defiled by pirates. Woah, deep, right? I won't go too much farther into the plot, but I will say that if you thought book one was lacking and were asking for more, book two did NOT disappoint.

You may be asking yourself, "this is the second book in this series, but can I read it as a standalone?" Although the blurbs and Goodreads say yet, I'm actually going to say no. Although I believe the intent was to have this be a standalone, I think it really relies a whole lot on knowing who some of the important players are. If you don't know how evil Delistaire was, you won't understand why Zebulon is such a big deal. If you didn't read the end of Shadow Fire, you don't know how some of our main characters came into being. That being said, Kimber Leigh does a pretty good job of recapping the first book, but still leaves out some of the more important things such as Freya's origins and Ashlyn/Zane's relationship. I would strongly suggest reading book one before tackling this one, if for no other reason than 'because it was amazing"!

As per the characters. I will just cover the main three. I LOVED the huge cast of this novel, it got a little confusing trying to place each person where, but once I did, I fell in love with everything Kimber Leigh had done. Katarina was one of the more interesting characters of hers that I have read. She was so strong, physically and mentally, and she was so loving. Katarina suffers great loss and still finds the strength to go on a fight for what is right. She is passionate and loves just as hard as she fights. Ethan was probably my favorite character. Can you possible imagine why? No seriously. He was such a well written male character that it was hard for him to not be my favorite. He was also both strong and passionate. Ethan was also strikingly emotional and we get to see that side of him that we often don't see in YA novels. We see many of Ethan's aspirations, hobbies, and passions throughout the story, and I thought that was a great touch to making him more personable. He also loves kids. Kimber Leigh, did you write this Ethan based on me? I'm beginning to thing yes... :P When it comes to our villain Zebulon, I won't beat around the bush, this dude was creepy. He says a few crude things to Katarina that left me with chills, but he is seriously evil. Seriously. He and Delistaire are so well written. I can always appreciate a great villain!

The fantasy element of this novel was spot on. Magic, mythical creatures, lore, etc, this novel had it all. I know I mentioned this in my review for the first novel , but I love a good fantasy novel. Can't get enough of them, but sometimes, sometimes I just can't do the "high" fantasy thing. Something about everyone wielding magic, dragons, etc just all has that "too much of a video game feel for me" and I have a hard time enjoying it. When I started reading Shadow Fire, I wasn't sure what to expect. Well, I have deemed this series "high fantasy", but it's unlike ANYTHING I have ever read before!

This book was an easy read that is suitable for mature-YA readers. It is a YA, but there are a few scenes of strong sexual tension, but nothing that YA readers aren't already used to reading!

There is so much I would like to continue to say about this book, but I think I will leave it at this. Kimber Leigh Wheaton has an absolutely phenomenal writing voice and I am so fortunate to have found this series. It is perfect for YA fantasy lovers who are looking for a great new read to get them out of their slumps! Clocking in at nearly 300 pages, this one isn't a light volume, but definitely worth your time investment.

All-in-all I am granting Stolen Moon, a well-deserved 4-star review! Much like its' predecessor, it was fun, fast paced, and a huge change of pace. One of the most unique and original fantasy reads I have read! Definitely save a space for this one on your TBR shelf folks!
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BUY LINKS

Thank you all so much for stopping by for my stop on the Stolen Moon blog tour! Be sure to enter that great giveaway before you leave. Also, Mrs. Wheaton is an awesome lady who is super nice to all of her fans to give her a shout out! I learned last time that Kimber Leigh is a big Zelda fan, like myself, so she is A-OK in my books! What do you guys love about the fantasy genre? Let me know what you thought in the comments and thanks again for stopping by! Huge shout out to Giselle and the amazing team at XPresso Book Tours for allowing me to participate in this awesome tour! Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan

Hidden Monster by Amanda Strong Release Day Launch

HIDDEN MONSTER by Amanda Strong

The monster has been unleashed. NEW RELEASE TODAY!

Publisher: Clean Teen Publishing

Rating: YAm (Mature for violence.)

Genre: Young Adult Sci-Fi Thriller

SAVE $2 TODAY ONLY! PRICE GOES UP TO $4.99 TOMORROW!

The breathing halted as the ski mask cocked to one side. His voice slurred, “What do I want?” I bit my lip to keep from gasping. He’d never responded before. “It’s obvious isn’t it? I want you to fall in love with me.”

For seventeen-year-old Samantha Campbell, running back woods trails usually means freedom from her less-than-perfect life. That is, until the day a morning run turns into a living nightmare. When Samantha wakes up to find herself bound to a dirty, pinstriped mattress, she realizes she’s anything but free. With a masked abductor repeatedly injecting her arm with an unknown substance while holding her captive, Samantha tries in vain to find out what he wants, but he refuses to speak. Until the day he breaks his silence and his twisted words are worse than what she’d imagined. He promises her one day she will fall in love with him but the best part will be that she won't know who he is... until it's too late. 

Finding herself freed from captivity, with her captor still at large, Samantha is on guard against everything and everyone around her. Unfortunately, walling up her heart proves difficult when eighteen-year-old Blake Knightley moves in next door. When Samantha starts experiencing strange changes within her, she realizes her captor may have left her more damaged than she originally thought. Now she must turn to Blake for help in order to unearth the truth behind the monster who started this all... or risk experiencing worse things than just falling in love.

ENJOY THIS EXCERPT FROM HIDDEN MONSTER:

Step, step, breathe, breathe, step, step, breathe, breathe. My shoes kept a steady rhythm with my burning lungs. I veered off my regular path, opting to hear the crunch of the leaves beneath my feet. The image of my mom’s disapproving face was ignored as I leapt across a gurgling brook. Breathe, breathe, crunch, crunch.

If I wasn’t mountain biking, I was running. I craved speed and freedom. I had to escape the oppressive perfection of living in the Campbell home. Thinking of my two older sisters, one model and the other a star volleyball player, my legs lunged, lengthening their stride. Not good at team sports and terrified by cameras, I knew my family felt my height was wasted on me. 

Even Jeremy gives me a hard time. 

A stitch pinched my side. Breathe, breathe. I knew I was going too fast, not pacing myself right. Something was urging me on, pushing me to scale the hill before me, and plunge deeper into the woods. I refocused on my rhythm, my inhales and exhales, and my body realigned itself, goose bumps shooting across my arms. There it is. I’d hit my second wind and I surged on, not caring where my feet led. 

It’s freedom! Complete and—

There was a rush of air, a whistling in my ear, and a sting to the back of my arm. Instantly, I tumbled to the ground, sliding into the damp morning dew. Cold dirt filled my nostrils as blackness enveloped me. 

***

I heard my own labored breathing long before I realized I was somewhere in between awake and asleep. Forcing my eyes open, I gasped. My senses took everything in at once—the smell of wood shavings, the scratchy ropes on my wrists and ankles, and the pressure of the mattress beneath my body. I screamed, but the empty room with wooden floors and stacked logs for walls was empty. No one burst through the door in the corner.

Realizing it was useless and only making my throat raw, I fell silent. Panic flooded me. How did I get here? I pressed my thoughts to retrace my steps, but my mind felt sluggish. My last memory was running in the woods just before sunrise. I could still feel the burn from the autumn air hitting my lungs. Now the solitary window painted a yellow rectangle on the floor. The room felt stuffy. It’s probably late afternoon. But is it the same day?

The minutes rolled slowly into hours, the silence suffocating. What had my therapist said to do when I was scared? Breathe deeply and don’t panic. It was too late for that; all the years of therapy after my childhood accident were rendered useless. I’m drowning all over again. Only this time, it wasn’t water filling my lungs but pure fear and terror pressing down on my chest. I gulped in dry air, my eyes burning with tears.

No one’s coming to save me. A sob escaped me as the real horror of the situation washed over me. I’m tied up. Someone knows I’m here. What would happen when they came back? As the last rays of light were snuffed out by the shadows of the night, that someone came through the wooden door.

Order your copy of Hidden Monster today! Click Here. 

ABOUT AMANDA STRONG:

Born in Dekalb, Illinois, Amanda Strong has called Utah, Arizona, Hawaii, Virginia and now New Mexico home. Amanda has been spinning tales since she was a child. Her family still remembers finding young Amanda with her bright pink glasses, hiding in random corners of the house while scribbling away in one of her many spiral-bound notebooks. You could say that some things never change since Amanda is still writing today. Amanda began her writing career when she uploaded The Awakener, her first full-length novel, on Wattpad where it received over 430,000 reads in four weeks. She was blown away and humbled by the reader support and feedback she received. Because of The Awakener's success as a non-published book, she was asked to talk on 1400 KSTAR about her story. 

When Amanda isn't writing, you can find her chasing her three rambunctious children around the house and spending time with her wonderful and supportive husband. On some occasions you can still find Amanda with her not-so-pink glasses, hiding in a corner reading her favorite young adult fantasy novels or working out only to blow her diet by eating ice cream.

In September 2013 Amanda Strong signed with Clean Teen Publishing. 

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The Muse by Raine Miller Release Day Launch

What if the truth about a famous painting was not what it’s been told to be? What if it was not even the original work and a different painting had inspired its creation? The story of a painting… The motivation behind the work, Flaming June—Romanticist painter, Lord Frederic Leighton’s magnum opus—a woman sleeping in a chair. Hauntingly beautiful, but with its inspiration locked away in the mystery of times past.

1811...
Burdened with family skeletons and agonizing guilt, an unwilling Lord Rothvale, one Graham Everley, returns from a long sojourn in Ireland to attend to the obligations awaiting him in England. The last thing he imagines to find is his destiny, but find her he does. Imogene Byron-Cole, a girl as lovely as her past is tragic. Graham can’t walk away from her, and so he marries her instead, in spite of an increasingly tangled web of troubles that threaten to destroy the very foundation of his entire existence.

As Graham and Imogene start out on their journey together, they express their love through a series of portraits. The art ensnares them completely, and in the end, becomes their salvation, bearing them through their deepest pain of loss, and inspiring a masterwork.

[This will be book one of a three part saga in the Rothvale Legacy Historical Prequel series.]

The Muse - Book I - Graham Everley
The Rogue - Book II - Clive Gravelle
The Stargazer - Book III - Colin Everley

Raine Miller

Raine Miller has been reading romance novels since she picked up that first Barbara Cartland book at the tender age of thirteen. And it's a safe bet she'll never stop, because now she writes them too! Granted Raine's stories are edgy enough to turn Ms. Cartland in her grave, but to her way of thinking, a hot, sexy hero never goes out of fashion. A former teacher, she's now writing sexy romance stories full time. She has a handsome prince of a husband, and two brilliant sons to pull her back into the real world if the writing takes her too far away. Her sons know she likes to write stories, but gratefully have never asked to read any, thank God! Raine loves to hear from readers and to chat about the characters in her books. You can contact her at raine_miller@ymail.com or visit www.RaineMiller.com to sign up for updates and her newsletter with links to upcoming books. Also, you can text RAINE to 96000 if you prefer.

LINKS:

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I don't know about you guys, but Ethan LOVES a great historical fiction. I've already been approached to review this one soon so you guys may be hearing a bit more about this from me! Think it sounds like the read for you? Head over to the buy links and get yourself a copy ASAP! Until next time, Happy Reading!

-Ethan