January 26, 2017

Lifers Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway



LIFERS
Author: M.A. Griffin
Release Date: January 31, 2017
Publisher: Chicken House (Scholastic)
Pages: 288
Formats: Hardcover, paperback, eBook, audiobook 

Find it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Audible, Goodreads


Description:

Fear haunts the streets of Preston's city: a girl has disappeared. Preston is drawn to investigate, exploring the city in the hunt for his missing friend. And deep in the bowels of a secret scientific institute, he discovers a sinister machine used to banish teenage criminals for their offenses.

Captured and condemned to a cavernous dimension, Preston is determined to escape. But this is no ordinary jail. Friendships will be forged and lives will be lost in a reckless battle for freedom, revenge--and revolution.

Set in a world all too similar to our own, Lifers is thrilling, pulse-pounding storytelling of the highest degree. 
Lifers is a unique young adult novel that blends elements of several genres together to create something fresh and new. I wasn't quite sure what to think going in to the book - the description was pretty vague, but it sounded interesting. It took me a little while to get into the story. The book is told from the third person point of view - and if you've read any of my other reviews, you'll know that I'm not a big fan of this style. It was a bit hard to connect with the characters, especially Preston (the main character), because of the POV. Personally, I think it hindered my reading experience more than I thought it would, but this is purely my own preference and other readers won't have the same issue. The author also uses a lot of flashbacks and memories throughout the novel - which I normally don't mind - but due to the POV, I just couldn't connect with them. If the story had been told from the first person perspective, I truly believe it would have been a whole different story for me. Again - just my own opinion.

The plot of the story was intricate and did a fantastic job of weaving together several genres. There's a bit of something for everyone - mystery, dystopia, contemporary, suspense/thriller, science fiction, action and adventure. I have to give props to the author for doing such a fantastic job of meshing all of these genres together and then make it incredibly fascinating. The story line had several layers and I enjoyed trying to figure things out before they happened - even though most of the time I was wrong. The author uses lots of detailed descriptions and vivid imagery to really bring the characters and the plot to life. I definitely recommend it to readers who enjoy all types of fiction and for those looking for something different than what's out there right now.


I'm a writer of children's fiction, represented by Ben Illis at the B.I.A., available for workshops and school visits when I'm not chained to a laptop cursing my lack of progress and/or poverty of imagination.

My debut novel, The Poison Boy, was written as Fletcher Moss. My second novel, Lifers, is my first for teen readers. It arrives April 2016. 



(3) Winners will receive a finished copy of LIFERS - US Only!
 






Tour Schedule: 


Week One:
1/23/2017- YA Book Madness- Interview 
1/24/2017- Here's to Happy Endings- Review 
1/25/2017- Novel Novice- Excerpt 
1/26/2017- A Dream Within A Dream- Review 
1/27/2017- Fantasy Book Critic- Guest Post


Week Two: 
1/30/2017- Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile- Review 
1/31/2017- Tales of the Ravenous Reader- Interview 
2/1/2017- Book-Keeping- Review 
2/2/2017- Wishful Endings- Interview 
2/3/2017- A Gingerly Review- Review
  






2 comments:

  1. Lifers sounds like a thrilling read, I would enjoy reading this book. Thank you

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  2. Looks like a great book! Thank you for the contest!

    ReplyDelete