BOOK TOUR: BLOODMARK

PUBLISHER: Wise Ink Publishing

DATE PUBLISHED: 1st November 2013

PAGES: 400

Today I am hosting the book tour for Bloodmark by Aurora Whittet which has been coordinated by Iread Book Tours.

SUMMARY: 

Sixteen-year-old werewolf princess Ashling Boru is different from other wolves—she was able to shift to wolf form at birth. Rather than bringing pride to her family, it brings fear, and as a result, she is forced to live in seclusion in Ireland’s countryside. Ashling’s reputation is further blackened when she refuses her betrothed and defies the ancient laws. When her pack’s oldest rivals begin hunting her, she finds herself in the small town of York Harbor, Maine—far from everything she’s ever known.

In Maine, she crosses paths with the dark and rebellious Grey Donavan, and something ignites within her soul. There’s just one problem: Grey is human. Their instant connection turns into a passionate romance, and Ashling begins to believe she can create her own life outside of wolf laws. When she begins to uncover long-buried pack secrets—secrets that threaten to destroy all she holds dear—Ashling’s courage and tenacity are tested. Will she choose her deep and enduring love for Grey, or will she follow Old Mother’s path to her destiny?

WRITING STYLE:

This book is told in the first person, from the perspective of Ashling, werewolf princess. Ashling’s voice in this novel is a combination of snark and humour that was interestingly refreshing amongst the grit and intrigue in this novel.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT:

I found the development of Ashling’s character through this novel was subtle. Ashling moves to a secluded part of England where she must learn to fit in with humans in order to finish her education and avoid her betrothal for as long as possible. Her exposure to humans, a high school life, and love develops Ashling’s character, towards the Queen she will one day be.

THEMES:

Love: Ashling is a werewolf princess and as such is destined to have a political marriage. However, forbidden love overcomes her when she meets Grey (a human). Can matters of the heart survive a brutal world?

Family: Ashling’s brothers are the epitome of protective and her relationship with her father is strained (to say the least).

OVERALL THOUGHTS: 

Blood and Chocolate meets Underworld… this book is a sweeping tale of forbidden love. Mixing a political structure of werewolf life with elements of different mythologies this book was truly a pleasure to read.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Aurora Whittet started out as a wild red-haired girl in Minnesota dreaming up stories for her friends to read. Mama’s Knight: A Cancer Story of Love is just the latest in a string of acclaimed works. Her first official writing endeavor became The Bloodmark Saga, featuring a werewolf princess-turned-ruler who falls in love with a human boy. Her first novel in the Bloodmark Saga, Bloodmark, came out in 2013, followed by Bloodrealms in 2014 and the final book Bloodmoon in 2016.

Keep Calm and Read On,

Kati

BLOG TOUR: THE LEGEND OF THE PUMPKIN THIEF BY CHARLES DAY

Today I am hosting the blog tour for The Legend of the Pumpkin Thief by Charles Day co-ordinated by Chapter by Chapter Blog Tours.

PUBLISHER: Tantrum Books

DATE PUBLISHED: 9th January 2012

PAGES: 162

GENRE: Middle Grade, Horror, Mystery, Paranormal, Halloween

SYNOPSIS:

 

As the townsfolk sleep, something creeps into the neighborhood. Hidden in shadows, its presence is as old as time itself, its intent not born of goodness.

Nick, a teenager who fancies himself a detective, wakes to find his carved masterpiece missing. Now a mystery is afoot, and Nick has his first assignment, to find out who or what is snatching up the town’s pumpkins and why.

Unfortunately, as with all great detectives, obstacles stand in Nick’s way—the neighborhood bully and his cronies, and the strange old lady and her dog who share the run-down house at the end of Nick’s block. As Nick investigates, an urban legend unravels . . . .

The Legend of The Pumpkin Thief.

Nick fears the legend as he embarks on the most dangerous adventure of his young life. Collecting clues, getting ever closer to the true nature of evil, he learns that curiosity comes with a high price.

 

WRITING STYLE:

This story is told from the third person in a way that reminded me a little bit of the Goosebumps books. I liked the examination of the different characters and who each of them linked into this story on the street on Halloween night.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT:

Assumptions made about characters at the beginning of the book were changed by the end. Through an exploration of each of the characters and their motivations the reader can gain an understanding and some empathy, even for the bully.

THEMES:

Family: One major theme that stood out to me was the relationship between Nick and his sister Sam. Their relationship rung true for a set of young siblings – having both their squabbles and their moments of comradery.

Bullying: Another major theme that was present in the book. Nick is bullied through the book, quite horribly. I found an overall commentary on the nature of bullying and the ability for others to stand up and stick together against this behaviour.

Stereotyping People: Each of the characters were stereotyped and seemed to fit into their own little niche for the storyline. I felt like there was some commentary on the need to look beyond stereotypes at the person underneath.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

A fun ride through Halloween night in a search for the inner character and the missing pumpkins.

I thought the incorporation of the urban legend in a Middle Grade novel about Halloween was very well done and while it drove the plot it did not overrun the characters, which were the highlight of this book for me.

I particularly liked exploring the motivations and individual quirks of each of the characters and who this contributed to the overall story.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

PURCHASE LINKS:

Google Play      BAM        Chapters      Amazon       B&N       Kobo      TBD      iBooks  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: 

Charles Day is the Horror Writer Association’s Mentor Program Chairperson, Co-Chair for the NY/LI Chapter, and a member of the HWA Library committee. He is also a member of the New England Horror Writers Association, the American Library Association and the Young Adult Library Services Association.

He is also the Bram Stoker Award® nominated author of THE LEGEND OF THE PUMPKIN THIEF. His 2013 published books are the recent release of REDEMPTION, co-authored with Mark Taylor, DEEP WITHIN, and the first book in his Adventures of Kyle McGerrt trilogy, a YA western heroic fantasy, THE HUNT FOR THE GHOULISH BARTENDER.
His forthcoming publications and projects in development for 2014 include a comic book series based on the ADVENTURES OF KYLE McGERRT trilogy, THE LEGEND OF THE PUMPKIN THIEF comics series, and his first middle-grade series, THE UNDERDWELLERS, and his third YA novel, IMMORTAL FAMILY.

On the publishing business side of things, Charles is the co-founder with Taylor Grant with Evil Jester Comics and founder/owner of Evil Jester Press and Hidden Thoughts Press (mental wellness collections,)

He’s also an artist and illustrator who is passionate about creating the many characters he’s brought to life in his published or soon to be published works. You can find out more about his upcoming writing projects, check out his illustrations and art, or find out what he’s cooking up next with that evil dude-in-the-box, the evil Jester, by visiting his Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/charles.day.92

 

GIVEAWAY: 

 

• One (1) winner will receive a scrabble tile book cover charm (U.S. Only)
• Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of The Legend of the Pumpkin Thief by Charles Day

 

This giveaway ends November 4th 2016

 

To enter this giveaway please click here.

Thank you for taking the time to be a part of this blog tour by viewing this page.

Keep Calm and Read On,

Kati

BLOG TOUR: KISS CAM BY KIARA LONDON

Today, I am a lucky host of the blog tour for Kiara London’s new book Kiss Cam that comes out on October 18th.

Publisher: Swoon Reads

Date Published: 18th October 2016

Pages: 272

SYNOPSIS:

In Kiss Cam, teen author Kiara London asks, what’s a little harmless kissing between friends?

Juniper, Jasper, and Lenny have been friends forever and co-own a vlog channel called WereVloggingHere. Their fans are huge “shippers” who believe that Juniper and Jasper are perfect for each other, and, despite warnings from friends and family, a simple Truth-or-Dare inspired kiss soon spirals out of control into a whole new world of making out and surprise kisses.

Juniper and Jasper’s relationship begins to shift. But as fan requests for different “Kiss Cam” segments keep pouring in, Juniper puts her worries aside and convinces herself that it doesn’t mean anything. After all, it’s just kissing… right?

WRITING STYLE:

This book is told in first person from the perspective of Juniper who is the female portion of the Vlogging team We’reVloggingHere. This is a really quick read and is exactly what you would expect from the writing style of a a Rom Com contemporary.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT:

The development of the characters in this book is exactly how I thought it would be. But that is OK, it is what I needed when reading it. Each of the three members of the vlogging team developed slowly through this novel leading up to the moment I was waiting.

THEMES:

Friendship: This book focuses on the friendship of the three main characters and how this friendship develops and changes when Kiss Cam comes into play.

Love: What happens when friendship leaks over into love? A lot of antics. Romantic love is not the only type of love explored here. Junipers love for her parents and her parents love for her is also a part of this book, even though not a large one.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

This book is a cute, fun contemporary read that is really quick and gives you all the feels. As a fandom based community we are all aware of ships. This book takes a look behind the camera and I loved every cute minute of it.

This is a book for all the fans out there who want a cute little read. The plot is a little predictable but this book is all about the journey and what a journey it is. If you cannot tell from the title… this book has A LOT of kissing.

I would recommend this if you like flirty fun books, great for getting over any reading slump.

 

🌟🌟🌟🌟

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Kiara London is the internet savvy, hopelessly romantic alter ego of Bethany Novak-Tveten, who in real life is part of the US Air Force. She started writing on the online writing site Booksie when she was thirteen and then transferred to Wattpad where her debut novel Kiss Cam was originally posted. She spends most of her time scrolling down Tumblr, attempting to read everything she can get her hands on, and drooling over fictional men.

GIVEAWAY:

There will be a giveaway for a physical copy of this book which is open U.S. Only. If you would like to be a part of this giveaway click here.

Thank you for visiting my blog and being a part of this blog tour. Blog tours are very important to gain recognition for authors new books that are coming out or that have already come out and I am ecstatic to be a part of this and cannot thank each and everyone in this great book loving community enough.

Keep Calm and Read On,

Kati