October 31, 2012

Dystopian Giveaway Hop!

 

Welcome to the Dystopian Giveaway Hop! This hop is dedicated to dystopian books that we love! It's being hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and My Shelf Confessions, and will run from November 1st - November 7th. Be sure to check out the linky at the end of my post to visit all the other blogs hosting awesome giveaways!

For my stop on the hop, I will be giving away (1) paperback copy of Matched by Ally Condie! 


Matched (Matched Trilogy #1)
Author: Ally Condie 

Description: 
Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.
 





Rules:
1. US/CANADA entries only!
2. Must be a follower of my blog. All other entries are optional.
3. Winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email before a new winner will be chosen.


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Middle Ground Blog Tour: Katie's Playlist

 


 Check out Katie's Playlist for Middle Ground!



Middle Ground by Katie Kaz on Grooveshark


Playlist: MIDDLE GROUND

1. Human… The Killers
2. Kontact Me… Boys Noize
3. Help, I’m Alive… Metric
4. Amber… 311
5. Swimming In The Flood… Passion Pit
6. Trail of Lies… Jedi Mind Tricks
7. Where Is My Mind?... Pixies
8. Pursuit of Happiness… Kid Cudi
9. All The Night Without Love… Elvis Perkins
10. Hide and Seek… Imogen Heap
11. Kids… Sleigh Bells
12. Dem Na Like Me… The Qemists
13. My Night With the Prostitute from Marseille… Beirut
14. Electrolite… R.E.M.
15. Fight Test… Flaming Lips
16. Darlin' Do Not Fear… Brett Dennen
17. The Cave… Mumford and Sons
18. The Dog Days are Over… Florence and the Machine
19. She Will Have Her Way… Neil Finn
20. The Love Song… K-OS 



What do you think of Katie's Playlist? Don't forget to check out my review of Middle Ground and enter my giveaway here!

October 30, 2012

Moonlight and Oranges Blog Tour: Excerpt & Giveaway!



Moonlight and Oranges
Author: Elise Stephens
Genre: YA Romance

Descriptions:

A timeless tale of young romance.

Lorona Connelly is ready for a change from her carefully planned, bookish life. When sparks fly at a costume party, she embraces a chance for romance with the handsome Kestrin Feather. However, she quickly realizes that even love and destiny may not be enough to overcome the reality of an overprotective mother-in-law and Kestrin's long, tarnished history of relationships.

When Lorona's curiosity leads her to Kestrin's journal, doubt plagues them both with insecurities and threatens the relationship. Can true love overcome the odds, or was their whirlwind romance just a frivolous crush? Author Elise Stephens shares a journey of young love, fate, and wounded trust in the story of Lorona and Kestrin, a couple who must learn to overcome their fears to share a life together.
   





 

“Are you going to eat that?” Lorona pointed at the decorative orange wedge on Yuki’s salad plate. Yuki handed it to her. As Lorona savored the fruit, Yuki cleared her throat. She wanted to talk about the party and had even bribed Lorona by treating her to lunch, but Yuki had not received one scrap of juicy gossip in return.
Lorona had woken that morning with more than a craving for orange juice. She’d wanted vodka and another kiss. She hoped Yuki hadn’t noticed the empty juice carton in the recycle bin.
You’re being stupid, Lorona told herself as the silence dragged on.
She wasn’t interested in a man like Kestrin. Not one bit. At all. Nothing. One memorable talk followed by a dance and an argument, and finished off with a kiss. It was over. Lorona felt a sinking dread. She was trying too hard to convince herself.
A glint of realization flickered over Yuki’s round face. Lorona had unveiled her mental tornado.
Yuki chortled, “You know, it’s practically written in Webster’s Dictionary—Kestrin Feather’s Kiss: Noun. Definition: See Love Potion Number Nine.”
“Not interested.”
Yuki bounced in her seat. “Not even the littlest bit? Even if—”
“I don’t care if he’s the sexiest guy in the world. If he isn’t
interested in long-term stuff, why in the world do you want to set me up with him?”
“To start, it’ll be good for you. You’ve turned down enough men with your high standards. For two, I think you want this. I’ve never seen you put on this much make-up for work or,” Yuki sniffed the air, “wear your gardenia perfume just to sit with a bunch of dusty books all day. There’s something different about you. I can smell it.” Yuki laughed at her own joke. “You like him and I think he got pricked with his own arrow. That kiss dare thing was his way
of saving you, and I’ve never seen him do anything like that for a girl. He’s acting noble and...” She leaned forward. “I think he might break his habit of flings for you.”
“You’re asking me to believe that he thinks I’m special?”
Yuki’s eyes danced. “I watched the way he carried you and I wasn’t scared for you anymore.”
Yuki’s voice echoed in Lorona’s head. It’ll be good for you. The “what if” questions wriggled to life. Lorona silenced them by speaking.
“Then I’m your little experiment?”
“Damn, I’m late for work.” Yuki stood. “I need to get back. I’ll pick you up for dinner.” She winked, dropped a twenty-dollar bill on the table and sauntered out, swinging her faux alligator purse.
Lorona wished the purse would come alive and bite the smug grin right off of Yuki’s face.



 


Elise Stephens received the Eugene Van Buren Prize for Fiction from the University of Washington in 2007, where she also received her degree in Creative Writing. Moonlight and Oranges is her first novel and was a quarter-finalist for the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award.

She lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband where they both enjoy swing dancing, eating tiramisu, and savoring the flavor of local live theater.
 

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October 29, 2012

Reaping Me Softly Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway






Reaping Me Softly
Author: Kate Evangelista
Genre: YA Paranormal/Fantasy
Release Date: October 30, 2012

Description:

Ever since a near-death-experience on the operating table, seventeen-year-old Arianne Wilson can see dead people. Just as she’s learned to accept her new-found talents, she discovers that the boy she’s had a crush on since freshman year, Niko Clark, is a Reaper.

At last they have something in common, but that doesn’t mean life is getting any easier. All while facing merciless bullying from the most powerful girl in school, Arianne’s world is turned upside down after Niko accidentally reaps the soul of someone she loves. This sends them both into a spiral that threatens to end Arianne’s life. But will Niko break his own Reaper’s code to save her? And what would the consequences be if he did?
  



Find the Book: Goodreads





Reaping Me Softly is a new young adult paranormal novel that follows the main character, Arianne "Ari" Wilson, who can see the souls of the dead after having a near-death experience. She has come to terms with her newfound abilities and is living a pretty normal life until Niko Clark comes crashing into her life. She had been crushing on him for years, and now he's telling her he's a Reaper. Ari's life comes crashing down around her when a loved one's soul is accidentally reaped by Niko. Will they be able to save the soul? Will Niko be able to save Ari from a terrible fate? And if he does, what will is cost him in the end?

This book was an addicting and exciting adventure that I didn't want to end. It was incredibly well-written and I absolutely loved the concept of the Reapers and their world. The characters were rich and well developed, making it easy to like them and identify with them. The romance between Niko and Ari was so sweet and romantic that it made me smile and my heart melt. It wasn't overly mushy or corny, which made it a huge plus in my book. The plot wasn't exactly original, but the writing and the twists gave it an original voice with a fresh take on the concepts. I loved the world of the Reapers and all the mystery and paranormal aspects that surrounded it. On top of dealing with all the crazy and weird otherworldy things going on in the book, Ari and her friends still had to deal with normal teen problems like school, bullies, family, and friendship. These are all serious and touching topics that everyone can relate to and I think it gave an extra layer to the book. Overall, this book went far beyond any expectations I may have had before reading it. I highly recommend it for fans of YA fantasy or paranormal romance.








When Kate Evangelista was told she had a knack for writing stories, she did the next best thing: entered medical school. After realizing she wasn't going to be the next Doogie Howser, M.D., Kate wandered into the Literature department of her university and never looked back. Today, she is in possession of a piece of paper that says to the world she owns a Literature degree. To make matters worse, she took Master's courses in creative writing. In the end, she realized to be a writer, none of what she had mattered. What really mattered? Writing. Plain and simple, honest to God, sitting in front of her computer, writing. (Taken from Goodreads)


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Blood Zero Sky Tour: Review & Giveaway



Blood Zero Sky
Author: J. Gabriel Gates
Genre: Science Fiction/Dystopian
Release Date: October 1, 2012

Purchase Link: Amazon

Description:

“Gates creates a dystopian nightmare setting of technology and greed… a Brave New World with a consumerist edge.”
- Publisher's Weekly

Unprofitables are banished to work camps to pay off their credit. Other tie-men and women look on apathetically. "Fair is fair. Everyone knows you shouldn't use more credit than you are worth to the Company. "They turn their attention to the next repackaged but highly coveted N-Corp product on the market, creatively advertised on the imager screens that adorn virtually every available flat surface. All the while, their mandatory cross-implants and wrist-worn "ICs" keep them focused on the endless cycle of work and consumption to which they are enslaved.

May Fields the CEO's daughter would like to believe she is above all that. Head of N-Corp's marketing team, the young woman who has almost everything anyone could want spends her days dreaming up ingenious ways to make workers buy more of what they already have and don't need. Even before May discovers that the Company is headed for its first loss in thirty years, she is feeling the stirrings of dissatisfaction with the system that has given her everything she's ever wanted . . . except the freedom to be herself.

When she is kidnapped by a member of the Protectorate a secret order dating back to the American Revolution May is suddenly faced with the frightening truth of what the Company's greed has done to our most basic human rights. Will she embrace who she is and join the battle to restore America's democratic freedom, or put her blinders back on and return to her safe and passionless life?

More prediction than fiction, "Blood Zero Sky "is a riveting, nonstop, and suspenseful gaze into the looking glass, destined to rise with the zeitgeist of our times to become the anthem of a generation.
  





Lately I've been really into science fiction novels - especially dystopians, so this book sounded right up my alley. Needless to say, I wasn't disappointed. The chapters were short, which keeps the reader actively engaged in the story. The narrative is very well-written and the characters are complex and deep; it was really easy to get sucked into the creepy futuristic world that Gates created. The novel is very fast-paced; so even though it was a bit long, it didn't take very long to read. I couldn't put it down. The plot had so many twists and interesting ideas that it truly keeps the reader on their toes and trying to figure out what is going on - right up to the very last chapter. The back story, history, and descriptions of the world the novel is set in was vivid and completely intriguing. The level of detail is captivating and I was totally immersed in the entire scope of the book. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes science fiction novels, especially dystopians, and futuristic thrillers.





 


Author J. Gabriel Gates is a native of Marshall, Michigan. The son of an English teacher, his passion for the written word began at a young age. During college, another passion – for performing – led him to get his B.A. degree in theater from Florida State University.

During his years in Los Angeles, he appeared in a dozen national TV commercials and penned several screenplays while laying the groundwork for his career as a novelist.

His novels include the YA fantasy books "Dark Territory: The Tracks, book 1," "Ghost Crown: The Tracks, Book 2," and horror novel "The Sleepwalkers." His dystopian sci-fi epic "Blood Zero Sky" is slated for release in October, 2012. (All are published by HCI Books.)
 
  
                                                He currently lives in Southeast Michigan. (Bio from Goodreads)

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October 28, 2012

Cover Crazy!


I don't normally do posts about covers, but there are some really exciting ones being revealed and they are GORGEOUS! I just had to share!!



A Darkness Strange and Lovely
Author: Susan Dennard

Following an all-out battle with the walking Dead, the Spirit Hunters have fled Philadelphia, leaving Eleanor alone to cope with the devastating aftermath. But there’s more trouble ahead—the evil necromancer Marcus has returned, and his diabolical advances have Eleanor escaping to Paris to seek the help of Joseph, Jie, and the infuriatingly handsome Daniel once again. When she arrives, however, she finds a whole new darkness lurking in this City of Light. As harrowing events unfold, Eleanor is forced to make a deadly decision that will mean life or death for everyone.











Goddess (Starcrossed #3)
Author: Josephine Angelini

After accidentally unleashing the gods from their captivity on Olympus, Helen must find a way to re-imprison them without starting a devastating war. But the gods are angry, and their thirst for blood already has a body count.

To make matters worse, the Oracle reveals that a diabolical Tyrant is lurking among them, which drives a wedge between the once-solid group of friends. As the gods use the Scions against one another, Lucas’s life hangs in the balance. Still unsure whether she loves him or Orion, Helen is forced to make a terrifying decision, for war is coming to her shores.

In Josephine Angelini’s compelling conclusion to the masterfully woven Starcrossed trilogy, a goddess must rise above it all to change a destiny that’s been written in the stars. With worlds built just as fast as they crumble, love and war collide in an all-out battle that will leave no question unanswered and no heart untouched.




Unbreakable (Unraveling #2)
Author: Elizabeth Norris

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben
is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?
 




Dance of the Red Death
Author: Bethany Griffin

EVERYTHING IS ON FIRE.

Araby Worth’s city is being torn apart by death, disease, and corrupt forces wanting to claim it for their own. She has lost her home. Her best friend is dying. Her mother has been kidnapped. The boy who made her feel something again has betrayed her. And her father may be a murderer.
But Araby has found herself.
Despite the death and destruction all around her, she will fight for herself, for her friends, for her city. Her rebellion will take her, finally, to the mad prince’s palace, for the decadent –and sinister—masked ball. It could be a trap. It could be the end of them all. Or it could be the moment that Araby becomes the kind of hero she never dreamed she could be.
The tragic, dark, and steamy conclusion to Bethany Griffin’s Masque of the Red Death saga.
 






Shadow of the Mark (Carrier of the Mark #2)
Author: Leigh Fallon

Life for Megan Rosenberg just got a lot more complicated.

While she evoked the air element, and her feelings for Adam intensified, a web of lies, deceit, and betrayal was spun around her. With the Order tightening its hold, and the reinstatement of the Mark Knights, Megan has more questions than answers as the Marked Ones grow in strength.

New people arouse suspicion, the DeRises start behaving strangely, and Megan begins to unravel a destiny shrouded in mystery. It’s a destiny the Order has struggled to hide, and a destiny someone from the past… far in the past, has already laid claim to.

Alliances will be made, and friends will be lost, as the Order’s dark secrets are revealed by the very thing they sought to destroy.
 




Dead Ever After (Sookie Stackhouse #13)
Author: Charlaine Harris

The 13th and final Sookie Stackhouse novel. 





















Ashes on the Waves
Author: Mary Lindsey

Liam MacGregor is cursed. Haunted by the wails of fantastical Bean Sidhes and labeled a demon by the villagers of Dòchas, Liam has accepted that things will never get better for him—until a wealthy heiress named Annabel Leighton arrives on the island and Liam’s fate is changed forever.

With Anna, Liam finally finds the happiness he has always been denied; but, the violent, mythical Otherworlders, who inhabit the island and the sea around it, have other plans. They make a wager on the couple’s love, testing its strength through a series of cruel obstacles. But the tragedies draw Liam and Anna even closer. Frustrated, the creatures put the couple through one last trial—and this time it’s not only their love that’s in danger of being destroyed.

Based on Edgar Allan Poe’s chilling poem Annabel Lee, Mary Lindsey creates a frighteningly beautiful gothic novel that glorifies the power of true love.
 




Infatuate (Gilded Wings #2)
Author: Aimee Agresti

Haven Terra is still recovering from an internship that brought her literally to the brink of hell when a trip to New Orleans leads to more trouble. There, while taking part in a student volunteer program, Haven and her friends Dante and Lance run across an enclave of devils known as the Krewe.     

These shape-shifting devils are more reckless and vicious than any Haven, Lance, and Dante have encountered. Yet the friends soon discover that their French Quarter housemates are also angels in training, and together they must face off with the Krewe in their quest for wings.     

But Haven’s resolve is tested when Lucian, the repentant devil with whom she was infatuated, resurfaces and asks her for help escaping the underworld. Can he be trusted? Or will aiding him cost Haven her angel wings—and her life?
 




Sweet Peril (The Sweet Trilogy #2)
Author: Wendy Higgins

Anna Whitt, daughter of a guardian angel and a demon, promised herself she’d never do the work of her father—polluting souls. She’d been naive to make such a claim. She’d been naive about a lot of things.

Haunted by demon whisperers, Anna does whatever she can to survive, even if it means embracing her dark side and earning an unwanted reputation as her school’s party girl. Her life has never looked more bleak. And all the while there’s Kaidan Rowe, son of the Duke of Lust, plaguing her heart and mind.

When an unexpected lost message from the angels surfaces, Anna finds herself traveling the globe with Kopano, son of Wrath, in an attempt to gain support of fellow Nephilim and give them hope for the first time. It soon becomes clear that whatever freedoms Anna and the rest of the Neph are hoping to win will not be gained without a fight. Until then, Anna and Kaidan must put aside the issues between them, overcome the steamiest of temptations yet, and face the ultimate question: is loving someone worth risking their life?
 




Charmed Vengeance (The Aether Chronicles #2)
Author: Suzanne Lazear

In the Faerie realm, Noli Braddock's relationship with her best friend V has grown into something more. But V's mother, Faerie Queen Tiana, has ruled that they are forbidden to see each other. Returning to the mortal realm, Noli joins the crew of her brother's air-pirate ship, the Vixen's Revenge. There she discovers that her brother has hired the scallywag Faerie huntsman, Kevighn Silver. While serving as shipmates, Kevighn and Noli learn that the Earth Court King plans to find a forbidden artifact--one that will bring destruction to everyone Noli loves. 











False Sight (False Memory #2)
Author: Dan Krokos

























Sky on Fire (Monument 14 #2)
Author: Emmy Laybourne
























Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
Author: April Genevieve Tucholke

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town…until River West comes along. River rents the guesthouse behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more? Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery...who makes you want to kiss back. Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.

Blending faded decadence and the thrilling dread of gothic horror, April Genevieve Tucholke weaves a dreamy, twisting contemporary romance, as gorgeously told as it is terrifying—a debut to watch.
 





Vortex (Insignia #2)
Author: S.J. Kincaid

The impossible was just the beginning. Now in their second year as superhuman government weapons-in-training at the Pentagonal Spire, Tom Raines and his friends are mid-level cadets in the elite combat corps known as the Intrasolar Forces. But as training intensifies and a moment arrives that could make or break his entire career, Tom’s loyalties are again put to the test.

Encouraged to betray his ideals and friendships for the sake of his country, Tom is convinced there must be another way. And the more aware he becomes of the corruption surrounding him, the more determined he becomes to fight it, even if he sabotages his own future in the process.

Drawn into a power struggle more dramatic than he has ever faced before, Tom stays a hyperintelligent step ahead of everyone, like the exceptional gamer he is—or so he believes. But when he learns that he and his friends have unwittingly made the most grievous error imaginable, Tom must find a way to outwit an enemy so nefarious that victory seems hopeless. Will his idealism and bravado cost him everything—and everyone that matters to him?

Filled with action and intelligence, camaraderie and humor, the second book in S.J. Kincaid’s futuristic World War III Insignia trilogy continues to explore fascinating and timely questions about power, politics, technology, loyalty, and friendship.
 




Rush (The Game #1)
Author: Eve Silver

So what’s the game now? This, or the life I used to know?

When Miki Jones is pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game—her carefully controlled life spirals into chaos. In the game, she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures. There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out. Miki has only the guidance of secretive but maddeningly attractive team leader Jackson Tate, who says the game isn’t really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival, and the survival of every other person on this planet. She laughs. He doesn’t. And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.
 








What do you think of these covers? Are any of these titles on your wishlist? Leave a comment!

Gravity Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway



Gravity (The Taking #1)
Author: Melissa West
Genre: YA Science Fiction/Dystopian
Expected Release Date: October 30, 2012
Publisher: Entangled Publishing

Purchase Link: Amazon 

Description:

In the future, only one rule will matter:

Don’t. Ever. Peek.

Seventeen-year-old Ari Alexander just broke that rule and saw the last person she expected hovering above her bed — arrogant Jackson Locke, the most popular boy in her school. She expects instant execution or some kind of freak alien punishment, but instead, Jackson issues a challenge: help him, or everyone on Earth will die.

Ari knows she should report him, but everything about Jackson makes her question what she’s been taught about his kind. And against her instincts, she’s falling for him. But Ari isn’t just any girl, and Jackson wants more than her attention. She’s a military legacy who’s been trained by her father and exposed to war strategies and societal information no one can know — especially an alien spy, like Jackson. Giving Jackson the information he needs will betray her father and her country, but keeping silent will start a war.
  




 

Everything about Ari's life has been determined for her without her consent or opinion, including what job she'll have and who she'll marry. The only problem is that Ari doesn't want that life. On top of that situation, for years Ari has been visited nightly by an Ancient - an alien being - who takes vital nutrients from her so he can survive. One night, Ari breaks all the rules and looks up at her Ancient, only to discover the most popular boy from her school - Jackson Locke - hovering above her. Everything Ari thought she knew - about her life, her history, her entire world - will be changed forever. She learns that there is about to be a war between the Ancients and the people of Earth, and only she has the power to stop it.

Gravity is a fresh, original voice in the young adult dystopian genre. It is entirely captivating with a unique concept and lots of twists. The novel is fast-paced and packed full of everything from action and adventure to romance and mystery. There never seems to be a dull moment during the story, which made it hard for me to put down. The characters are realistic and likable. I easily felt like I knew Ari and her friends and empathized with their mission and obstacles. The romance between Ari and Jackson was sweet and utterly swoon-worthy, without being super mushy or corny (which is always a plus for me). The setting of the post-apocalyptic world as well as the story of what happened was really detailed and interesting. I liked how the Ancients and the people of Earth were both shown throughout the book, so it wasn't a completely one-sided narrative. The events that happen in the story are thrilling and intriguing, and I'm definitely looking forward to the next book to come out so I can see what will happen next! 


 



 
Melissa lives in a tiny suburb of Atlanta, GA with her husband and daughter. She pretends to like yoga, actually likes shoes, and could not live without coffee. Her writing heroes include greats like Jane Austen and Madeleine L'Engle. 

She holds a B.A. in Communication Studies and an M.S. in Graphic Communication, both from Clemson University. Yeah, her blood runs orange. 

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October 27, 2012

Taking on the Dead Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway!

 


Taking on the Dead (The Famished Trilogy #1)
Author: Annie Walls
Genre: Dark Fantasy/Horror
Release Date: September 20, 2012


Description:

Life for Kansas was perfect until the day the world changed.

She has been hiding out for four years in solitude. It’s the only way to survive. The only way not to draw the living dead. Helping a small group of people, she learns the new world might not be what she assumes. Venturing out of her refuge and comfort zone, she meets Rudy, who helps her find a greater purpose. She realizes that the world has moved on without her. Only it’s not what she expects. Her knowledge of the living dead grows and only makes her more curious as humanity continues to hang on by a thread. While on her search for answers she finds comfort in new friendships and love, but her past seems as if it will haunt her forever.

Kansas takes it upon herself to help other survivors, which would be easy if the famished were the only obstacles.

In a trilogy plot thick with twists and turns, this adult dark fantasy is emotional as much as it is horrifyingly gripping.
  


Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13546207-taking-on-the-dead 





Taking on the Dead is the first book in a dark fantasy/horror trilogy that tells the story of Kansas and her fight for survival after the world turned upside and everybody changed - into zombies. She has been living in solitude for four years until a group of survivors shows up needing her help. She decides to venture out into the world again, only to discover that things have changed since she was last in it. She meets Rudy, who gives her life a purpose, and also finds friendship and even love along the way. 

This novel is packed full of action and horror, and written in such a fantastic way that I couldn't put it down. The story is engaging and thrilling - readers are immediately thrown into the post-apocalyptic zombie world that Kansas is struggling to survive in. The characters are all very realistic and believable, which made it easy to like them and root for their cause. The plot was well written and really fast paced, with the thrill of survival and fear making it a true page turner. I liked that there was honest human emotion and struggle thrown into the narrative, which made it feel complete - not just a slasher zombie book. The relationships and friendships that develop throughout the novel were a great balance to the gore and tautness the rest of the plot held. Overall, I found this to be a gripping and super creepy book full of emotion and deeper meanings. I will definitely be waiting for the next book to see what will happen next!

 




 Author of dark fantasy and sub-genres of horror. Voracious Reader and Googler. Lover of dark humor. Horror Buff. Zombie Apocalypse Enthusiast. Loyal Cracked follower. Pinterest Addict. Wife of adoring husband. Mother of a five year old Bruce Wayne. Cook. Maid. Kisser of boo-boos. Ultimate Time Waster. Perfect Procrastinator. Lolly Gagger. Trubie. Cake Decorator. Tea Drinker. Sculpey Sculptor. Girl Gamer. Perfectionist in the art of Facebook stalking. And now, God help me, a blogger. Oh yeah, and a twitter, twatter, tweeter. Well yeah, I’m one crafty bitch.

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