Cover Reveal: The Kelpie

The Kelpie by T.J. Wooldridge

I can't honestly say I was joking when I suggested to my best friend, Joe – Prince Joseph, eldest son of England's Crown Prince – that we could probably find something the police had missed in regards to the missing children.  After all, eleven and twelve year olds like us did that all the time on the telly and in the books we read…

            When Heather and Joe decide to be Sleuthy MacSleuths on the property abutting the castle Heather's family lives in, neither expect to discover the real reason children were going missing:

            A Kelpie.  A child-eating faerie horse had moved into the loch "next door."

            The two barely escape with their lives, but they aren't safe. Caught in a storm of faerie power, Heather, Joe, and Heather's whole family are pulled into a maze of talking cats, ghostly secrets, and powerful magick.

            With another child taken, time is running out to make things right.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This gorgeously intriguing Spencer Hill Press release will be available later this year.

To go along with sharing the simply gorgeous cover, author T.J. Wooldridge has enlisted several of her friends who have helped her in the journey of writing this novel to put together a special treat for you!

Each day of the week, search for individual components of the cover--with a bonus piece of art on Wednesday--at these blogs.  Collect the right words per the instructions, and unscramble the line of poetry to be entered to win one of three prizes!

Prize 1

A handmade fused glass kelpie necklace from Stained Glass Creations and Beyond

Prize 2

A handmade necklace from Art by Stefanie of Vic Caswell's rendering of the kelpie from the cover!

Prize 3

An 11x16 poster of the cover of the Kelpie signed by T. J. Wooldridge and artist Vic Caswell

5x7 cards of all the cover aspects featured in the Scavenger Hunt

So, how do you take part in the Scavenger Hunt?  Here are the details:

Monday 3/25

 Visit the Faery Castle at Kate Kaynak's blog: http://thedisgruntledbear.blogspot.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, 10th word

Tuesday 3/26

 Hop over to Scotland at Stained Glass Creations and Beyond: http://stainedglasscreationsandbeyond.wordpress.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, 12th word

Check out an artist rendition of Heather MacArthur's family tartan with Aimee Weinstein at tokyowriter.com

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, first word

Wednesday 3/27

 Bonus Art!

Meet Heather's dad, Michael MacArthur, at Valerie Hadden's blog: http://valeriehadden.wordpress.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, 12th word

Thursday 3/28

 Cast your eyes upon the kelpie, itself, with Suzane Reynolds-Alpert at http://suzannereynoldsalpert.blogspot.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: 2nd sentence, 2nd word

And feel the snark of Monkey, the fey cat with Justine Graykin at http://justinegraykin.wordpress.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, 3rd word

Friday 3/29:

 Meet Heather's best friend, Prince Joseph at, who's hanging out with author Darby Karchut at http://darbykarchut.blogspot.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, 17th word

And finally meet Heather, herself, who's hanging out with one of Trisha's editors, Laura Ownbey at http://redpenreviews.blogspot.com/

Scavenger Hunt Goal: first sentence, first word

Collect all the words and put them together in a poetic sentence, and enter them into the rafflecopter giveaway for a chance to win one of the three prizes:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/MTBiNjRkMDYwN2U2MWZjNzBmNmM4YWEwNTEyODI0Ojc=/

Cover Reveal: Frigid

Frigid by J. Lynn

 

I have been desperate to see this cover since this novel was first announced!

It is simply gorgeous and I absoluely cannot wait to read Frigid!!

 

 

Cover design: Okay Creations

Photographer: Jennifer Rush

For twenty-one-year-old Sydney, being in love with Kyler isn't anything new. They'd been best friends ever since he pushed her down on the playground and she made him eat a mud pie. Somewhere over the years, she fell for him and fell hard. The big problem with that? Kyler puts the 'man' in man-whore. He's never stayed with a girl longer than a few nights, and with it being their last year in college, Syd doesn't want to risk their friendship by declaring her love.

Kyler has always put Syd on a pedestal that was too high for him to reach. To him, she's perfect and she's everything. But the feelings he has for her, he's always hidden away or focused on any other female. After all, Kyler will always be the poor boy from the wrong side of tracks, and Syd will always be the one girl he can never have.

But when they're stranded together at a posh ski resort due to a massive Nor'easter, there's nothing stopping their red-hot feelings for each other from coming to the surface. Can their friendship survive the attraction? Better yet, can they survive at all? Because as the snow falls, someone is stalking them, and this ski trip may be a life-changer in more ways than one.

 

Frigid will be available in digital formats on July 30^th 2013

Print release of Frigid will be November 5^th 2012

Goodreads
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16122034-frigid?ac=1

 

 J. Lynn, also known as Jennifer L. Armentrout, is a # 1 New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author. She lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russel Loki.

 

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen.

She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Twitter  https://twitter.com/JLArmentrout
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/JenniferLArmentrout
Website http://www.jenniferarmentrout.com/

 



Waiting on Wednesday #13

This is a weekly meme 'Waiting on Wednesday' that I take part in, it is hosted by Breaking the Spine

It is a meme where you post about a yet-to-be-released book that you are looking forward to reading. Here is a book I have been highly anticipating:

  The Chaos of Stars 

by Kiersten White

Expected Publiation Date: September 10th, 2013

Number of Pages: 352

Description

(from Goodreads)

Isadora’s family is seriously screwed up.

Of course, as the human daughter of Egyptian gods, that pretty much comes with the territory. She’s also stuck with parents who barely notice her, and a house full of relatives who can’t be bothered to remember her name. After all, they are going to be around forever—and she’s a mere mortal.

Isadora’s sick of living a life where she’s only worthy of a passing glance, and when she has the chance to move to San Diego with her brother, she jumps on it. But Isadora’s quickly finding that a “normal” life comes with plenty of its own epic complications—and that there’s no such thing as a clean break when it comes to family. Much as she wants to leave her past behind, she can’t shake the ominous dreams that foretell destruction for her entire family. When it turns out there may be truth in her nightmares, Isadora has to decide whether she can abandon her divine heritage after all.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Chaos of Stars sounds so incredibly intriguing, especially since I haven't read many YA books about Egyptian gods.

I also really love the cover, the contrast of the colours and the subtle intricacies.

What do you think of The Chaos of Stars?

Cover Reveal: Death and Mr. Right

Death and Mr. Right by Kendra L. Saunders

It is March 32nd, the day that doesn’t exist, and Death, the agent of nightmares, has been demoted and exiled to live among mortals for the rest of his unnaturally long life. Everyone knows They don’t look lightly on important items getting lost or an agent falling in love.

Can the diva-like Death navigate the modern world, recover what was stolen from him (the names of the damned… ooops!) and get his job back? Or will he fall in love with Lola, the pretty thief who got him into trouble in the first place?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This cover is gorgeous and  quirky as anything, and it is absolutely something that I want to get my hands on!

DEATH AND MR. RIGHT will be available October 2013.

 

Kendra's bio:

 

Kendra L. Saunders is the author of the magic realism novel Inanimate Objects and the dark comedy Death and Mr. Right. She has been published in Snakeskin Magazine, Premier Bride Magazine and has conducted interviews for Steampunk Magazine, The New England Horror Writers and ipmnation.com. She reports regularly for Pure Textuality and writes helpful writing articles for NerdCaliber’s Pages of Note.

In 2012, Kendra attended a number of sci-fi/anime/steampunk conventions, notably Arisia, Anime Boson, Watch City Festival, ConnectiCon and TeslaCon. She is the creator of the popular “Five Headed Muse” panel, which features fun and witty wisdom from the five aspects of a writer’s life: character building, inspiration, writing habits, publishing and marketing, as well as the “What We Can Learn from Fan Fiction” panel which takes a detailed look at the upsides to reading and writing fanfiction. Kendra was also featured as a guest on other panels throughout 2012 and has been noted for her energy and enthusiastic approach to writing education.

Originally from Texas, Kendra has lived in New Hampshire, Idaho and Wisconsin and has traveled through most of the 50 states. Somewhere along the way she developed a love for discovering the quiet magic in new places, and she seeks to expose it in her novels, short stories and poetry. She also has a lifelong passion for black and white photography and shares photographs from her travels and adventures through her website, facebook, tumblr and twitter.

Kendra is host of the quirky literary podcast, 13 1/2 Minutes and has been a featured guest and co-host on various radio and podcast shows.

In her spare time Kendra likes to daydream about (foreign) boys with dark hair, drink too much tea, read fashion magazines, listen to records on vinyl, plan her dream trip to England and attempt to travel back in time to the Jazz Age. Find her online at www.kendralsaunders.com on twitter at @kendrybird or on tumblr athttp://www.inanimateobjects.tumblr.com

Waiting on Wednesday #12

This is a weekly meme 'Waiting on Wednesday' that I take part in, it is hosted by Breaking the Spine

It is a meme where you post about a yet-to-be-released book that you are looking forward to reading. Here is a book I have been highly anticipating:

  The Sound by Sarah Alderson

Expected Publication date: August 1st, 2013

Number of pages: 320

Description:

(from Goodreads)

When aspiring music journalist Ren Kingston takes a job nannying for a wealthy family on the exclusive island of Nantucket, playground for Boston's elite, she's hoping for a low-key summer reading books and blogging about bands. Boys are firmly off the agenda.

What she doesn't count on is falling in with a bunch of party-loving private school kids who are hiding some dark secrets, falling (possibly) in love with the local bad boy, and falling out with a dangerous serial killer...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I can't wait to read The Sound! Sarah Alderson is such an amazing author that there is no doubt that this novel will be beyond enjoyable and swoon-worthy!
Also, how gorgeous is this cover?!

THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES (books 1-5) by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Date read: March 15th 2013
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Urban Fantasy, Adventure, Paranormal, Childrens
Source: Bought (re-read)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Description source: Goodreads)

They chronicle the adventures of the Grace children, twins Simon and Jared and their older sister Mallory, after they move into Spiderwick Estate and discover a world of faeries that they never knew existed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

 

The Spiderwick Chronicles are quite difficult to review seperately from each other but to me are worth reading just for some light-hearted entertainment.

The Field Guide introduces us to the three Grace siblings, Mallory, Jared and Simon and their mother at a time when life is anything but easy.

With their parents divorce they are forced to move into their old Aunt Lucinda's house which is full of dust and creaks to give a generally spooky atmosphere.

When they discover a secret library which contains pictures and secret information about mystical cretaures titled "Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You", which Jared immediately takes a great interest in.

 

Once disturbing the forgotten room and removing what looks to be a rats nest from inside a wall, things start to go horribly wrong. After closly reading the Field Guide, Jared has an idea about what the problem is and they go about fixing their mistakes.

Not long after a close ally is revealled to them they also discover that the world of the Field Guide may not be as ficticious as they had initially thought.

 

During the following four books the relationship between the siblings and the unseen world around them continues to blossom, as they discover and interact with creatures they only dreamed of before.

The Grace siblings are dragged further into a world that is not only dark but that has consumed many others, including their Uncle Arthur.

They meet Goblins, Hobgoblins, Dwarves, Dragons and many other creatures that most people have only ever heard of.

 

 

I re-read these books because when I first read them (many years ago) I loved them and was instantly entranced in the world alongside Malory, Jared and Simon. This time is was not much different, it is aimed at younger teens but I still found them to be an enjoyable and fun read.

The imagination shown in the depth of places and ideas is superb and the imagery in the way places are described is simply magic!

 

The worlds do not seem to clash, which I find irritating in some novels, and it seemed quite realistic and possible to me that a world could exist like this one that we are unaware of.

It really encourages the reader to be imaginative and makes it very easy so slip into the story alongside the characters.

 

It is quite a slow plot progression, the first book is basically just introducing the concepts and characters, and it it understandable to have it this way due to the target readers.

Despite this I would also rather have the small books compiled into one larger book but it does then open up 5 different, interesting ideas for cover art.

 

I don't find any of the characters to have any overly negative aspects that would not otherwise be present in real life, again another positive aspect of these book.

I really only have one small gripe about The Spiderwick Chronicles and that is that while their father is briefly mentioned, it would have been nice to include him a little more and have some kind of resolution between him and Jared.

The little pictures and arkworks throught The Spiderwick Chronicles are really a stroke of genius! The images make the books easier to relate to and lets face it, theyre gorgeous and extremely well drawn.
Tony DiTerlizzi has certainly done a wonderful job on them and they aren't to frequent throughout the books so that instead of being excited to see them it becomes like a picture book. The images enhance the plot line and characters in a subtle and clever way.

 

For those of you who have already seen the film adaptation of these novels I will simply say that quite a lot has been changed and left out from the books.

I adored the film, with all its magic and adventure, and the books reflect a lot of that but despite that I found the film to be paced quite a bit faster which was a good alteration.

I didn't enjoy some of the changes that they made but see for yourself and read them, they're a nice read anyway.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I rate The Spiderwick Chronicles Three out of Five!

CHECKERS by John Marsden

Publication date: 1996
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Number of Pages:128
Date read: February 16th 2007
Genre: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction
Source: Bought 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Description source: Goodreads)

She lives in the best suburb. She goes to the finest school. Her family is wealthy and powerful. She has everything money can buy.

So why are there reporters outside her house?
And why is her father telling lies on television?
And why is the Premier talking about them in State Parliament?

Something is wrong. Something is terribly wrong.
 Riveting and compulsively readable, John Marsden's Checkers plunges us deep in the mind and world of a teenage girl whose life has spun completely out of control.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Checkers  is the emotional, heart-wrenching story of a teenage girl who, in the space of a few hours, gets her life thrown upside down and learns that no one in life can really be trusted. 

Written in the form of diary flashbacks, Checkers introduces us to a girl who voluntarily checked in to a nearby psychiatric ward but refuses to talk about what helped her to make her mind to be there. 

In flashbacks we get to experience her life before the Psychiatric ward, featuring her dysfunctional and uncommunicative family of four as life for them spirals out of their control. Checkers, the dog that her father buys for her is a beacon of light for the unnamed girl when her father comes under attack from the media due to being under suspicion for fraudulent activities within his co-owned business. 

 When a connection ties Checkers to the fraud case, the situation worsens and everything takes a turn for the worse. A turn that makes everything change forever.

Checkers was a gripping book that had me emotionally entranced from the opening chapter.  Like many of Marsden's other novels, Checkers takes on a different writing style, which does take some getting used to , but personally I found it to be quite interesting and effective for this storyline. 

It helps to express how the main character feels and what she is thinking, which gives more dimension to the plot line and encourages more empathy towards her. 
The ending to Checkers is gripping and really gives the story an individual spin, showing that Marsden is not afraid to take things all the way and he really goes off on a limb ending things the way that he does. 

This is an enjoyable, emotional novel that is worth reading and doesn't take much time at all. 

   

"It’s a miracle anyone survives to be a teenager. It’s a miracle any teenager survives to be an adult."

I rate Checkers Four out of Five!

NEW GIRL by Paige Harbison

Publication date: January 31st, 2012
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Number of pages: 320
Date read: March 10th, 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Retelling, Mystery
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback





------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Description source: Goodreads)

Welcome to Manderley Academy. I hadn't wanted to go, but my parents were so excited…. So here I am, the new girl at Manderley, a true fish out of water. But mine's not the name on everyone's lips. Oh, no.

It's Becca Normandy they can't stop talking about. Perfect, beautiful Becca. She went missing at the end of last year, leaving a spot open at Manderley—the spot that I got. And everyone acts like it's my fault that infallible, beloved Becca is gone and has been replaced by not perfect, completely fallible, unknown Me.

Then, there's the name on my lips—Max Holloway. Becca's ex. The one boy I should avoid, but can't. Thing is, it seems like he wants me, too. But the memory of Becca is always between us. And as much as I'm starting to like it at Manderley, I can't help but think she's out there, somewhere, watching me take her place.

Waiting to take it back.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New Girl is an intriguing read, the cover and the description work so well in drawing your interest and pulling you in. I ended up impulse buying New Girl at a sale and just got stuck into it.

The novel starts out by giving us a background on the main character and how it came about that her parents were so excited to send her off to Manderley, she agrees to go to please them and because it is a new opportunity to branch out and learn new things, she thinks that things at Manderley won't be so bad...

But arriving at Manderley to find herself under the repressing label of New Girls isn't the worst part of her new school experience, why? Because she replaced the school's sweetheart, the one who went missing and it seems that no one is willing to give her a chance or believe that she isn't trying to take Becca's place.

Given a hard time from the outset, the main character is an interesting narrator who tells the story in such a way that she allows you, upon occasion, to really feel some sympathy for her. The real intrigue in this novel come from the second perspective given, Becca's. Becca's point of view is all flashback to the events following her own admission to Manderley and how she changed things up, as well as how things started to do drastically wrong. But is Becca really missing? What happened to her? And is she coming back? Back to take her rightful place?

Written in an easy to enjoy and highly suspenseful manner, this story will keep you wondering exactly what happened to Becca and if she really is just waiting to take back her place at Manderley. There is an overuse of sex in the plot, with some characters getting it on very quickly indeed. Some characters were quite difficult to figure out, one of them being Max, he is described as extremely good looking, but there is a mystery to him that has you wonder at his part in the novel.

The seeming connection between the main character and Becca added a thriller-like aspect to the narrative, and I loved the fact that there was a ploy the author employed that I did almost catch on to about half way through, but kind of wrote it off until it was revealed at the end. This novel is kind of gritty, full of a huge variety of characters, each with their own emotions and motive, as well as secrets, making this novel quite enjoyable.

“There was no up, there was no down."

I rate New Girl Three and a Half out of Five!

ANGUS, THONGS AND THE FULL- FRONTAL SNOGGING by Louise Rennison

Book one in the Confessions of Georgia Nicolson
Publication date: June 24th, 1999
Publisher: Piccadilly Press
Number of pages: 160
Date read: September 14th, 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Humour, Chic Lit, Romance, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback





---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Description source: Goodreads)

There are six things very wrong with my life:

1. I have one of those under-the-skin spots that will never come to a head but lurk in a red way for the next two years.

2. It is on my nose

3. I have a three-year-old sister who may have peed somewhere in my room.

4. In fourteen days the summer hols will be over and then it will be back to Stalag 14 and Oberfuhrer Frau Simpson and her bunch of sadistic teachers.

5. I am very ugly and need to go into an ugly home.

6. I went to a party dressed as a stuffed olive.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Look, I can't go out with you, because...because...because I'm a lesbian.”

Angus, Thongs and the full-frontal snogging was a novel that I recall my friends many years ago raving about and trying to get me to read. Having finally caught up I can say that I regret not reading them back when I was in my early teens because the humour and style mimicks that of a 14 year old girl perfectly!

We are drawn into the life of Georgia Nicolson through her diary and get to experience everything that happens along with her. Her crazy family and friends that all drive her wild at times as well as the highs and lows of both boys and dating. Along with her wicked sense of humour that often kept me laughing for pages on end she looks at everything exactly the way that most 14 year old girls do.

When sex-god Robbie arrives the comedy really sets in with her small comments and snide remarks about things that drive her bonkers. Georgia eventually decides that Robbie will be hers soon and devises a fool-proof plan that will certainly land her Robbie. But family and friends can really get in the way sometimes.

Overall I enjoyed Angus, Thongs and the full-frontal snogging a lot and found it to be quite funny, it certainly had its moments though. I can see how easily other girls in their early teen would find this novel to relate to and the messages and lessons that Georgia learns throughout it can be very valuable indeed.

To me Georgia was an irritating character, being not only vain and incredulously self-centred but also demanding, high maintenance and hormonal. By the time I was nearing the end I had gotten used to her character and interestingly enough she didn't irritate me to the degree that she had at the beginning.

The plot was not as predictable as I had initially thought and I enjoyed that it took those different turns along the way, so that I could not be entirely sure as to where Georgia would end up in life. It was well paced until about halfway through when it really slowed down until it was almost the end, but lifted its game a but then.

I am looking forward to continuing the series and seeing what else Georgia gets involved in and how much trouble she creates.

“Unbelievable! I said, "What would I be doing walking the streets at night as a stuffed olive- gate-crashing cocktail parties?”

I rate Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging Three out of Five!!!