Crystal Fire Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Crystal Fire! Today I have my review of the book to share with you and don't forget to scroll down and enter the tour wide giveaway! To follow the rest of the tour, click on the banner above!

Crystal Fire (The Hunted #2)

Author: Jordan Dane

Genre: YA Fantasy

Release Date: November 26, 2013

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Description:

Because of what you are, the Believers will hunt you down.

A storm is brewing on the streets of LA, one that has intensified since a tragic and deadly confrontation claimed an innocent life.

While Gabriel Stewart trains his army of teen psychics to stop Alexander Reese--the obsessed leader of the Believers--the fanatical church becomes more bent on the annihilation of all Indigo and Crystal children. They're silencing the voices of the telepathic hive, one soul at a time, with frightening experiments cruelly executed on vulnerable minds.

When the Believers torture a mysterious homeless boy, Oliver Blue, they brainwash him into betraying his own. The boy becomes a deadly pawn to take Gabriel down. As the fires of chaos burn around him, Gabe is running out of time. He'll need to confront his past--and the man who made him--before the hope of peace for the future is silenced forever.  

Crystal Fire is the second installment in a young adult fantasy series that follows a group of special kids and teens known as Indigo's. These kids are the next step in human evolution - they all possess unique psychic gifts that set them apart from the rest of the world. Not everyone believes that they are harmless though. The Believers - a church determined to destroy the Indigo kids - will stop at nothing to rid the world of these "abominations." Gabriel Stewart is back as both leader and teacher for the Indigo kids, along with training Lucas - a young teen who is becoming a Crystal. Things are getting worse for the Indigo kids that Gabe hasn't found yet - he's seeing them being held and tortured in his dreams - and he refuses to let any more kids be destroyed for being different. One of the kids, Oliver Blue, has been handpicked as an experiment to determine just how far an Indigo's mind can be broken, and they successfully turn him against the others - especially Gabe. Will Gabe be able to face the Believers in a final attempt to stop them - including the head of the church, who just happens to be his own father? Will Gabe and the other Indigo kids ever be safe?

I read and reviewed the first book in this series - and really loved it. The premise and concept behind the series is completely fascinating. I loved learning about the history and the story behind the Indigo and Crystal kids. The story was really detailed and I think the level of description added a lot of depth to the storyline. The characters continued to be interesting with their own personalities and flaws. I liked coming back to the characters from the first book along with meeting new ones and learning about their lives too. The plot was very well written with a realistic dialogue that really helps pull the reader into the story. The writing itself was fantastic and the book flowed effortless with a fast pace.  The story is told from varying points of view - different characters in the book - so we get to see into the minds of all the various characters and their views on what was happening. It gives the reader a bit of inside access to the story that you wouldn't normally get with just one defined narrator POV. Overall, this was a really thrilling second book in a series that will have readers begging for more. I'm already eagerly awaiting the next book to see what will happen next. Highly recommended for fans of YA fantasy!

Bestselling, critically-acclaimed author Jordan Dane’s gritty romantic thrillers are ripped from the headlines with vivid settings, intrigue, and dark humor. Publishers Weekly compared her intense novels to Lisa Jackson, Lisa Gardner, and Tami Hoag, naming her debut novel NO ONE HEARD HER SCREAM as Best Books of 2008. She also pens young-adult novels for Harlequin Teen. Formerly an energy sales manager, she now writes full time. Jordan and her husband share their Texas residence with two lucky rescue dogs.


Social Media Links:
Website: http://www.JordanDane.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JordanDane
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JordanDaneAuthor
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jordandane/
ADR3NALIN3: http://adr3nalin3.blogspot.com
Fringe Dweller: http://jordandanebooks.blogspot.com

Indigo Awakening (Book 1) Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15725160-indigo-awakening 

Buy Links:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
The Book Depository
Kobo

  GIVEAWAY: (10) finished copies of Crystal Fire (US/CAN)

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Indigo Awakening Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the Indigo Awakening blog tour hosted by YA Bound. Click HERE to see the rest of the blog tour schedule!

Indigo Awakening (The Hunted #1)
Author: Jordan Dane
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Release Date: December 18, 2012
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Format: Paperback/ebook
304 pages

Book Links:
Goodreads
Amazon
Barnes and Noble 

Description:

Because of what you are, the Believers will hunt you down.

Voices told Lucas Darby to run. Voices no one else can hear. He’s warned his sister not to look for him, but Rayne refuses to let her troubled brother vanish on the streets of LA. In her desperate search, she meets Gabriel Stewart, a runaway with mysterious powers and far too many secrets. Rayne can’t explain her crazy need to trust the strange yet compelling boy—to touch him—to protect him even though he scares her.

A fanatical church secretly hunts psychic kids—gifted “Indigo” teens feared to be the next evolution of mankind—for reasons only “the Believers” know. Now Rayne’s only hope is Gabe, who is haunted by an awakening power—a force darker than either of them imagine—that could doom them all.  

Indigo Awakening is a truly enthralling first book in a new YA paranormal series by bestselling author Jordan Dane. It follows a group of teens known as "Indigo" kids. They are different from other people - they have special gifts and are the next step in human evolution. Although these Indigo kids just want their freedom and the right to live among everyone else, a group of religious fanatics are determined to catch them and rid the world of their existence. Enter in Lucas Darby - a unique Indigo known as a Crystal - and things go seriously wrong. Will Lucas's sister Rayne, along with her mysterious and gifted new Indigo ally Gabriel, be able to find Lucas in time?

This was a seriously cool book. The description had me interested from the beginning and once I started reading, I was immediately hooked from the first paragraph. The premise and concept behind the book was very unique and intriguing. I loved the history and the story behind the Indigo kids. It was really detailed and I think the level of description really added a lot of depth to the storyline. The characters were all interesting and had their own personalities. I really liked all the main characters - Lucas, Gabriel, Rayne, Rafe, Kendra, Benny - they all added their own touch to the story that made them special to the book. 

The plot was very well written and used a lot of cultural references and slang, which made it feel realistic instead of forced - especially with the dialogue of the characters. The writing itself was awesome and the book flowed really well and was definitely fast-paced. It kept me eagerly flipping pages to see what would happen next. Also, the story keeps moving from character to character - for example, one chapter would hop between Rayne, Lucas, and Rafe - so we could see into the minds of all the various characters and their views on what was happening. It gives the reader a bit of inside access to the story that you wouldn't normally get with just one defined narrator POV. Overall, this was a really enchanting and thrilling first book in a series that will have readers begging for more. I'm already eagerly awaiting the next book to see where things will pick up and what will happen next. Highly recommended!!

Bestselling, critically-acclaimed author Jordan Dane’s gritty romantic thrillers are ripped from the headlines with vivid settings, intrigue, and dark humor. Publishers Weekly compared her intense novels to Lisa Jackson, Lisa Gardner, and Tami Hoag, naming her debut novel NO ONE HEARD HER SCREAM as Best Books of 2008. She also pens young-adult novels for Harlequin Teen. Formerly an energy sales manager, she now writes full time. Jordan and her husband share their Texas residence with two cats of highborn lineage and two lucky rescue dogs. 

Author Links:

 Website / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest

Thriller/Crime Fiction Blogs: The Kill Zone

YA Blogs: ADR3NALIN3 / Fringe Dweller

 

 

~HarlequinTEEN prize pack, includes (US only):
· INDIGO AWAKENING by Jordan Dane
· ON A DARK WING by Jordan Dane
· IN THE ARMS OF STONE ANGELS by Jordan Dane
· THE JULIET SPELL by Douglas Rees
· BELONGING by Karen Ann Hopkins (ARC)
· DANCERGIRL by Carol M. Tanzman
· 2 Harlequin notebooks


~4 Infinity Bracelets: (US only)
For anyone who has read an advance copy of INDIGO AWAKENING, you know that a silver infinity bracelet plays an important part in the story. Special bracelets will be given away on the virtual tour so the lucky winners will be part of Rafael’s street family. Rafe’s bracelet was in black leather, but I’ve added a white leather braid as my personal remembrance to you for being in MY family.
 
~1 audio book of In the Arms of Stone Angels. Digital download only. (International) 


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