Friday, March 15, 2013

[Review] A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forrest


Title: A Shade of Vampire
Author: Bella Forrest
Published: December 14th, 2012
Source: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review
Blurb from Goodreads: On the evening of Sofia Claremont's seventeenth birthday, she is sucked into a nightmare from which she cannot wake.
A quiet evening walk along a beach brings her face to face with a dangerous pale creature that craves much more than her blood. 
She is kidnapped to an island where the sun is eternally forbidden to shine.
An island uncharted by any map and ruled by the most powerful vampire coven on the planet. She wakes here as a slave, a captive in chains. 
Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is the one selected out of hundreds of girls to join the harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal Prince. 
Despite his addiction to power and obsessive thirst for her blood, Sofia soon realizes that the safest place on the island is within his quarters, and she must do all within her power to win him over if she is to survive even one more night.
Will she succeed? ...or is she destined to the same fate that all other girls have met at the hands of the Novaks?






Buy this book from Amazon





Excerpt from A Shade of Vampire
by Bella Forrest

I’d been meandering along the shore for about an hour when I suddenly sensed that I wasn’t alone. Someone was approaching me from behind. My heart leapt. I was so sure it was Ben, that when a stranger showed up beside me, I couldn’t hide my disappointment.
He must have noticed, because a smirk formed on his lips. “Were you expecting someone else, love?”
I eyed him suspiciously, remembering how many times my father had told me not to talk to strangers. I looked him over, taking in his appearance. My eyes widened. I couldn’t find words to describe how fine a man he was. He was almost beautiful. The first thing I took notice of was how his blue eyes were about three shades brighter than any I’d ever seen before. It was such a stark contrast to his pale – almost white – skin and dark hair. Standing beside me, he was easily more than half a foot taller. His height, broad shoulders and lean build reminded me of Ben, but he had a presence that was far more imposing than my best friend’s.
My gaze settled on his face.
I realized that he was inspecting me just as closely as I was him. His eyes on me suddenly made me feel uncomfortably vulnerable. I gave my father’s advice a second thought, but quickly canceled out all notions of heeding to his counsel when I reminded myself that he stopped caring a long time ago.
I straightened to my full height and mustered all the courage I had to keep myself from running away from this stranger.
Big mistake.
The confident smirk didn’t leave his face for even a moment.
“Like what you see?”
“A bit full of yourself, aren’t you?” I scoffed, annoyed by his audacity.
He stepped forward, closer to me, and leaned his head toward mine.
“Don’t I have the right to be?”
He knew he looked good and wasn’t about to act like he didn’t.
“Whatever,” was my oh-so-brilliant comeback.
My shoulders sagged with defeat as I took a step back, unsettled by how close he was now. I rolled my eyes and did a one-eighty, not quite in the mood to play whatever game this stranger was proposing.
I would soon realize that I was about to play his game whether I liked it or not.
He grabbed my arm and turned my body to face him. This motion alone made every single internal alarm I had within me go off in a frenzy.
This man was danger and I knew it. I tried to wriggle away from his touch, but I was no match for his strength.
“Tell me your name,” he commanded.
I was about to refuse, but was horrified to find myself blurting out my name in response.
“Sofia Claremont.”
As soon as I revealed my name, his eyes lit up with a kind of sinister approval. Then he reached for my face and traced his thumb over my jaw line.
“Hello, Sofia Claremont. You’re one stupid girl for taking a walk alone at this time of night. You never know what kind of evil a pretty little thing like you could happen to come by.”
I found myself wondering exactly what kind of evil he was. But I was suddenly overcome by the sensations that were surrounding me. My senses took in everything at once. I heard the waves, felt the sand, smelled the ocean salt, tasted the flavor of cherry and saw the stranger’s manic appearance as he stuck a needle to my neck. The effect was instant. I was barely able to gasp, much less scream. I went from sensing everything to sensing absolutely nothing.
My last conscious thought was that I may never see Ben again.


You can also get an exclusive FREE “sneak preview” of the first 6 chapters by clicking here!: http://forrestbooks.com/sneakpeek.html
(Make sure you check it out now because this preview will not be available for long).




Review

My thoughts: When the author asked me to do a review of this book, she sent me the first six chapter so I could have an idea about it, and I was instantly craving for more.
The story is narrated from two points of view: Derek's and Sofia's.
It is Sofia's seventeen birthday, and with his family out of the picture, the only one who could make her feel loved is her best friend, Ben. But, he forgot her birthday and she's so mad at him and his stupid new girlfriend that she decides to take a walk by the beach. A huge mistake. There she meets a stranger who turns out to be a vampire and as if the day  wasn't already turning out to be pretty bad, this man kidnaps her and take her to The Shade.  
The Shade is a sanctuary for vampires located in an island, where is always night and they are protected and served by humans slaves. 
Sofia goes from being the girl who nobody pays attention to at home, to be the one that everyone's trying to get a piece from -literally. That bothered me a bit, because it's a little stereotypical and I've read it a lot of times, but I understand it is necessary for the sake of the story.  
Well, Sofia is to be delivered as a slave to the prince of the shade, Derek. He's a powerful vampire who has been asleep for the last 400 years. At first I though Derek would be this mean, hateful vampire who takes advantage of his position and just thinks of human as food and nothing else. But I was quite surprised to find out he's anything but. He's aware he's a monster which ironically makes him less a monster than anyone of his kind. After all this vampire is the classic good guy, he shows interest in preserving humans lives but he's still a vampire and has to struggle with his need of blood, a conflict between what he wants and what he needs. Besides, he has origins quite interesting, bonus points for a point of view I've never read before. You'll have to read it to find out what I'm talking about. He's sweet and fair and oh God he's good looking. He doesn't treat Sofia as a slave and with time he learns to see her as an equal and that's what captivated her. He's not like the hideous jackass of his brother, Lucas, nor cold as ice like his sister Vivienne.
Sofia is a strong character, she learns to suck it up after she learns she won't be able to escape without getting killed in the process. 
The chemestry between the two of them is great from the beginning, they comfort each other without even knowing it. When they first met I though Sofia had lost her mind telling him "I know an excuse when I hear one. Don't you dare deceive yourself into believing that you're the victim, Derek Novak". I mean, good Lord! He could've killed her just for saying that. But since then, I started liking her a whole lot more, because she showed she's able to stand up for her life even when the chances are against her.
I love learning about The Shade from Derek's point of view it was great that he was just getting to know this new world too, because through his eyes we can learn how everything is like and I could picture all of it pretty easily.
Near the end, there were a few twists I sure as hell didn't see coming and that made this book so much better!
Overall I think this is a great book and I'm amazed at the length of it, because in so little amount of pages, the author was able to create a story, a world and characters well built and interesting. 

I would recommend it for: Fans of YA and Paranormal genre, fans of vampires and everyone who has a little time, because it's a short book and you can read it in less than a day.

Rating: 



Quotes:


Sofia: “I know an excuse when I hear one. Don't you dare deceive yourself into believing that you're the victim, Derek Novak.” 

Sofia: “Because I don’t believe that you are a slave to what you’ve become. I don’t believe that you simply can’t.” 

Derek: "But I was a coward. I dreaded to think of what would happen once I actually died. What happens to the living dead once they pass away? I shuddered every time I found myself thinking about it. 
It was perhaps quite a strange thing that the undead could be so afraid of death, and yet it was true. 
I was afraid to die, so I went to sleep instead."


About the author:


Bella Forrest has been telling stories pretty much since she could talk. Instead of having her parents read her bed-time stories, she would prefer to share with them her own made up tales.
As she grew older, she developed a passion for the fantasy genre. She's an incurable Potterhead.
Her debut novel, A Shade of Vampire, was released on December 14, 2012.
The book became a Number 1 Christmas Bestseller in Vampire Romance, Paranormal and Fantasy on Amazon.
If you sign up for personal email updates from her here: http://www.forrestbooks.com ,
you'll be the first to hear about her new releases.


And here are a few places you can hang out with her!: 




[Review] The Paparazzi Project by Kristina Springer


Title: The Paparazzi Project
Author: Kristina Springer
Published: December 15th, 2012
Source: I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Blurb from Goodreads: Livvie Peterson thought taking Interpersonal Communications her junior year would be an easy A. But when the first assignment is given, her world flips upside down. Here’s the deal: the class is assigned a six-week project and is split into three groups— Paparazzi, Tabloid, and Celebrities. The Paparazzi follow around the Celebrities taking pictures and grabbing any kind of quotes they can. The Celebrities try to navigate being tailed on a daily basis. And the Tabloid receives all the information collected by the Paparazzi and decides what makes the weekly summary report. Sounds harmless…and it’s all just pretend anyway, right?
Livvie is assigned as Paparazzi and when she is matched up with the über-cute Chas Montgomery as her Tabloid boss she’s pretty sure things couldn’t get much better. Livvie’s uncanny ability to capture the Celebrities in compromising photos matched with Chas’s skill of exaggerating captions and editing the photos make them an unstoppable team. And the long hours working side by side with Chas aren’t a bad bonus.
Livvie simultaneously launches an anonymous blog, leaking the class’ photos and stories on the Internet. Her rising follower number quickly becomes addicting and she possibly spills too much information online. Once she finds her own celebrity will she be able to give it back? And will Chas be gone before she ever has the chance to find out?





Review

My thoughts: This was such a fun read! It is really hard to come up with something new in a genre like YA, where it seems like everything is pretty much already out there. So, I don't know how the author manages it, but this sure wasn't something I've read before. 
The Paparazzi Project is the kind of book I wish I could have written. Mostly because it reminds me why I like to read in the first place: because it is fun! While reading this book I forgot to check for grammar mistakes (not that this book has a lot or any from what I know) or little holes in the plot because I was really captivated by the idea behind the whole story.
How awesome would have been if I had a class like Interpersonal Communications and a teacher like Mrs. B back in high school? It would have been amazing! Seriously I don't think there is anything more interesting than human behavior out there. And being able to do a whole project based on tabloids, celebrities and the media in general and getting a grade for it sounds pretty cool to me. Don't take me wrong, I'm not that much into magazines and I don't keep tabs on celebrities, but I do have my celebrity crush just like the next person and I really don't mind taking a look on his whereabouts from time to time.
Our protagonist and from whom point of view the story is narrated, is Livvie, a sixteen-year-old girl in her junior year at high school. She's funny and creative but insecure and with a huge tendency to rambling. She has lived in the shadows of Emma -her little sister and piano prodigy- for too long to think she's anything more than average. Her parents make that clear anyway. So, she's more than fine with watching from the sidelines and tries to stay off the high school radar. Unless until this awesome project come her way. The class is separated in three groups: Celebrities, kids who had to allow others following them and taking pictures of their every move. Paparazzi, the ones that had to follow the celebrities around and try to get the best shot of them. An finally, the Tabloids, the ones that have to take everything the paps manages to get from the celebrities and edit the info in a sort of newspaper for the whole class to enjoy. 
Things like that, Livvie ends up being a Paparazzi and the boy who she's starting swooning over, Chas, gets to be her Tabloid and so they start working together, and a sweet relationship begins. You can tell they like each other, but it's not insta-love-forever-and-ever, just that realistic crush type of thing you have in high school. 
Through this whole project Livvie has to learn to set her boundaries and would make more than a few mistake in the way, some of them pretty avoidable, but well, teenagers, we all have been one... Could this innocent school project turn into a massive high school chaos? Give it a try if you want to find out :)

I would recommend it for: Everyone who likes the YA genre and wants an original idea. 

Rating:



About the author:


Kristina Springer is author of the recently released young adult novel, THE PAPARAZZI PROJECT, THE ESPRESSOLOGIST, which has sold in six countries, was acquired for film, and was a 2010 Society of School Librarians International Honor Book, and JUST YOUR AVERAGE PRINCESS, a Fall favorite. She also wrote the middle-grade novel, MY FAKE BOYFRIEND IS BETTER THAN YOURS, which was a Scholastic Book Club Bestseller and a 2012 YALSA QUICK PICK. She has a Masters in Writing from DePaul University and resides in a suburb of Chicago with her husband and children. Visit her at www.KristinaSpringer.com or @TinaSpringer.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

[Review] Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Title: Beautiful Disaster
Author: Jamie McGuire
Series: Beautiful #1
Publisher: Atria Books
Published:  August 14th 2012 (first published May 26th 2011)
Source: I purchased a Kindle copy from Amazon.
Blurb from Goodreads: INTENSE. DANGEROUS. ADDICTIVE.
Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.
Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.



Review

My thoughts: If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be INTENSE. Because, Jeesh! It was such an emotional roller coaster that I was emotionally tired when I finished it.  
If you are looking for a prince charming in here, well, you are definitely in the wrong place. Travis Maddox is the opposite to a good guy. He's damaged and aggressive, a jerk who objectifies women and who has this macho-attitude that makes you want to punch him in the face, kiss him hard and run screaming with your hands in the air at the same time.  Things like that, you would think this asshole isn't worth read about... well, you are wrong, again. He's really far from perfect, he has a ridiculously huge amount of flaws and even when nothing is entirely white or black, he would be a deep dark grey. But there is good within him and that makes him a really interesting character to read about. His contradictions, as frustrating as they are, make him authentic and real. You can see that the author is not trying to create this stereotypical bad boy who appears to be bad but it is really good in the end when you discover that everything was a facade. Travis IS a bad guy, there's no denying it, you sure as hell don't want him as an enemy. But also he is loyal to his friends and family and would do anything for them. 
Abby is not that good of a girl either, because she has done and seen a lot of things. But she's trying to change for her own good, trying to get away from a life she doesn't want, but you know how the universe has its ways of laughing in our faces... she ends up meeting Travis, who is the exact opposite she should want in this new life she's trying to live, but she can't resist him, as much as she tries.
They truly made a beautiful disaster as a couple. They have beautiful moments together but then everything starts spiraling out of control, but no matter what, they're meant to be together and they could bring up the best of each other. 
This is a great love story and I was hooked from the beginning. I loved the mean characters as much as the secondaries. It's well written and never fails to bring your emotions up. 
I'm not giving 5 clocks just because sometimes I felt like the plot kept circling around and not going forward and you could see the sequence before hand and I would've liked it better if there was a little more mystery.

I would recommend it for: Everyone who enjoys the New Adult genre. It has some kind of strong content for younger readers, so I think it should be +18 rated.

Rating:





Quotes:

“To douchebags!" he said, gesturing to Brad. "And to girls that break your heart," he bowed his head to me. His eyes lost focus. "And to the absolute fucking horror of losing your best friend because you were stupid enough to fall in love with her.” 

“I knew the second I met you that there was something about you I needed. Turns out it wasn’t something about you at all. It was just you.” 

“You know why I want you? I didn’t know I was lost until you found me. I didn’t know what alone was until the first night I spent without you in my bed. You’re the one thing I’ve got right. You’re what I’ve been waiting for, Pigeon.”


About the author:

Jamie McGuire was born in Tulsa, OK. She was raised by her mother Brenda in Blackwell, OK, where she graduated high school in 1997. Jamie attended the Northern Oklahoma College, the University of Central Oklahoma, and Autry Technology Center where she graduated with a degree in Radiography.
Jamie now lives in Enid, OK with her three children and husband Jeff, who is a real, live cowboy. They share their 30 acres with four horses, four dogs, and Rooster the cat.
Books published by Jamie include the Providence trilogy, and The New York Times best seller Beautiful Disaster, a contemporary romance. When she’s not writing, Jamie spends her days letting her four dogs in and out.

[Review] My Ex From Hell by Tellulah Darling

Title: My Ex From Hell
Author: Tellulah Darling
Series: The Blooming Goddess Trilogy (Book #1)
Publisher: Te Da Media
Expected publication date: April 1st, 2013.
Source: I receive an e-copy on a read-to-review basis from NetGalley
Blurb from Goodreads: Sixteen-year-old Sophie Bloom wishes she’d been taught the following:
a) Bad boy’s presence (TrOuBlE) + teen girl’s brain (DraMa) = TrAuMa (Highly unstable and very volatile.)
b) The Genus Greekulum Godissimus is notable for three traits: 1) awesome abilities, 2) grudges, and 3) hook-ups, break-ups, and in-fighting that puts cable to shame.
Prior to the Halloween dance, Sophie figures her worst problems involve adolescent theatrics, bitchy yoga girls, and being on probation at her boarding school for mouthy behaviour. Then she meets bad boy Kai and gets the kiss that rocks her world.
Literally.
This breath stealing lip lock reawakens Sophie’s true identity; Persephone, Goddess of Spring. She’s key to saving humanity in the war between the Underworld and Olympus, target numero uno of Hades and Zeus, and totally screwed.
Plus there’s also the little issue that Sophie’s last memory as Persephone was just before someone tried to murder her.
Big picture: master her powers, get her memories back, defeat Persephone’s would be assassin, and save the world. Also, sneak into the Underworld to retrieve stolen property, battle the minions of Hades and Zeus, outwit psycho nymphs, slay a dragon, rescue a classmate, keep from getting her butt expelled from the one place designed to keep her safe…
… and stop kissing Kai, Prince of the Underworld.
My Ex From Hell is a romantic comedy/Greek mythology smackdown. Romeo and Juliet had it easy.


Review



My Thoughts: Being the first book on a series it makes a great first impression. I loved it from the very first page. The story is narrated from Sophie's point of view and it is awesome, because everything she thinks seem so authentic that you can actually say: "That's a teenage girl". I really like the witty dialogue and the snarky comments and the way that Sophie's mind works. 
I loved Hannah, the sidekick and best friend, who is beautiful and smart at the same time even if she's just human, she can kick some serious butts. 
Kai, well, he's infuriating! I just wanna shake him hard and yell at him for being such a jackass and then just kiss him and then slap him in the face (I'm not making any sense, am I?). 
About Theo, this mysterious best friend who has a lot of secrets and a wicked sense of humor... I really like this character, but that's mostly because I feel like he's hiding something and has all this mysterious vibe. We don't really get to know him in this book, but I'm hoping we'll get to the bottom of his personality in the next books. 
Bethany... she's a b*tch, a beautiful, powerful, self-centered b*tch. If I were Sophie I would have kill her as soon as I knew I was able to. Creepy much? Well, she totally deserves it!
I love the roll of mythology in the story and I've always been a huge fan of Greek mythology. I've read a lot of books which central theme is some Greek myth, but this one was somehow special. I really liked the way the information was treated and I loved that there wasn't info dump moments or anything. 
I love the dialog because it always felt right. It was authentic and never forced. Also, I really liked the titles for every chapter, they said so much about what's in them and most of them are hilarious. 
I have a lot fun reading this book, sometimes I even laughed out loud and I'm not usually like that while reading a book, but this one has some majorly funny stuff going on. However, that this book was funny doesn't mean that it was less deep.

I would recommend it to: Young Adult genre lovers, who likes Greek mythology and whoever who had enjoyed The Goddess Test or Percy Jackson series. 

Rating:



Quotes:

“You think I'm a freak?" I asked carefully. 
"Only sexually. Maybe physically. Definitely mentally."

"Stranger things have happened, Neo. And it was Halloween"
"It was, Morpheus. But since I wasn't abducted, thrown into a shipping container, ans dent on my way to the Baltics to be sold into sex slavery, highly unlikely."
Hannah gave me a look of ultimate disbelief. "Right. That rack of yours would command such a good price"
"Try my highly prized virginity"
"I dunno. You've done a lot of biking."

"Fairies?" I muttered sacasrtically, painfully draggi8ng myself back over the fence.
"No such thing"
"Typical. Sparkly winged beings, sorry. Fire throwing ghost, no problem."

"My real name is Prometheus"
"And I am Bond, James Bond"

About the author (from her Goodreads page):


Tellulah Darling
noun
1. YA Novelist
2. Alter ego of professional screenwriter and instructor
3. Sassy minx

Geeks out over: cool tech.
Squees for: great storytelling.
Delights in: fabulous conversation.
Writes about: where love meets comedy, flavored with pop culture. Awkwardness ensues.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

[Blog Tour] Persistence of Vision by Liesel K. Hill: Review & Guest Post




Title: Persistence of Vision 
Author: Liesel K. Hill
Series: Interchron (Book #1)
Publisher: Tate Publishing, Inc.
Publication Date: January 29, 2013
Page Count: 384
Blurb: In a world where collective hives are enslaving the population and individuals have been hunted to the verge of extinction, Maggie Harper, and independent 21st Century woman, must find the strength to preserve the freedom of the future, but without the aid of her memories.
After experiencing a traumatic time loss, Maggie is plagued by a barrage of images she can't explain. When she's attacked by a creep with a spider's web tattoo, she is saved by Marcus, a man she's never met, but somehow remembers. He tells her that both he and her creepy attacker are from a future in which individuals are being murdered by collectives, and Marcus is part of the rebellion. The collectives have acquired time travel and they plan to enslave the human race throughout all of history. The flashes Maggie has been seeing are echoes of lost memories, and the information buried deep within them is instrumental in defeating the collective hives.
In order to preserve the individuality of mankind, Maggie must try to re-discover stolen memories, re-kindle friendships she has no recollection of, and wade through her feelings for the mysterious Marcus, all while dodging the tattooed assassins the collectives keep sending her way.
If Maggie can't fill the holes in her memory and find the answers to stop the collectives, the world both in her time and in all ages past and future will be doomed to enslavement in the grey, mediocre collectives. As the danger swirls around her and the collectives close in, Maggie realizes she must make a choice: stand out or fade away...




Learn more about this book:
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Buy this book:




Review

First thoughts: Persistence of Vision is the first book of the Interchron series and it's Liesel Hill's debut novel. We can put it on the New Adult (even YA because of its clean content) Dystopia genre but it has some fantasy and a mix of science fiction elements that makes the story richer and overall pretty captivating.
That said I should clarify that even if you think that with all those fictional elements the story could be a little hard to get into or understand, don't worry. This book is completely believable and it's based on the power of human intelligence and science progress, so if you like to fantasize about what could happen in the distant future with the new scientific developments, this is definitely the book for you.
I'm not really used to read this kind of book, I mean, I read a lot of NA Romance and Dystopia but mostly separated from each other. But when the author came to me asking me to be a part of this tour, I just had to read the outline and I was sold. With such an interesting premise I couldn't let this opportunity slip by, and I'm really glad I didn't, because I really liked this book and I was immerse in this captivating world from the very first page. It has everything you would want in a great book: mysteries, action, romance, funny moments,  endearing characters, a well built world and what I liked the most is that it makes you think and wonder and compare that reality with your own. 
Being this a debut novel I just can say to the author: Where where you hiding and what took you so long? I mean debut novels can be tough because everyone says: "there's rough potential and things that need to be work on", but in this case, if this is just the first one and it blew me away, I wouldn't miss the next book for the world!

Plot: In this futuristic world, people has learned to use their brains at their full potential and they're able to do amazing things with the power of their minds. But with this newly discovered powers, ambition rises and we find certain people who would do anything to be more powerful than anyone else. That's how the Collectives come to life. What can be more powerful if you could not only use your brain to its full potential but to interfere with someone else's brain and make them think what you please? The Collectives are a mass of people that thinks the same way as if they were a single mind. As opposite we have the Individualist, those who refuse to join the Collectives and are willing to run and fight for their free will.

Characters: Maggie, is the protagonist of this futuristic adventure. I think Maggie is a great character because even when she's part of this whole new world (Interchron), she doesn't remember most of it, so you learn along with her through the book and that makes her really relatable. 
Marcus, is an enigma at the beginning, you would find yourself wondering along with Maggie "where did he come from?". But as the story develops we start to understand his story just as we get Maggie's. 
The romance between these two character is subtle, you don't get big passionate moments but this sexual tension and kind of buddy moments that kept you trying to read between the lines. 

Writing: The book is written in third person but you can clearly perceive it is mostly from Maggie's point of view. 
You can tell that the author made a lot of research to make this book happen which is always appreciated. The language is rich and the story fluid, don't be afraid of getting caught up in technicalities because the book is full of action and it has some really funny moments that made everything much smoother. 

Rating:


Quotes: 

"People ought to be treated equally and given equal opportunities, but no two people are exactly alike. They exude their own kind of beauty--strong in some areas, weak in others, and just as beautiful for their weaknesses as for their strengths."

"David: What I mean is." He backpedaled upon seeing her expression but then rubbed his forehead, obviously frustrated. "My brain is drawn to yours"
Maggie glanced from side to side, unsure what to say. That had to be the worst pick-up line she'd ever heard, or at least the geekiest."

"Karl: Do you know what persistence of vision is?"
She shook her head.
"It's the term science uses when you see something that is no longer there"
[...]
Marcus: "Perhaps -he ran his finger down her cheek to wipe away a tear-"it's a gift you have, an ability to see that which s no longer there [...]
Maggie: "Or maybe some things are so vital that they imprint themselves on your very soul. All the flashes had something to do with you, Marcus. They couldn't take away my memories of you, even... when they did. You had such a pull on me..." A term Karl had used came to her mind just then. "You were my persistence of vision."




Guest Post
My Book Journey by Liesel K. Hill


Writing a book is unlike anything else you’ll ever do. It involves hours of tedious, unpaid work and can take years to come to fruition. It’s a creative endeavor that you take on by yourself, with no idea what to do or how to do it.

Madeleine L’Engle said, “Inspirations usually comes during the work, rather than before it.” That’s a perfect description of writing. You just have to jump in and start, knowing that you’ll learn and make mistakes along the way, probably look like an idiot a few times, but have faith that, ultimately, you will succeed.

When you start out, it’s exciting and scary. You can’t imagine what it will be like when your book is finally released. By the time it actually does, though, you’re so used to the idea that it seems more natural than surreal.

It’s different for friends and family. Most of mine are in awe—can’t believe I’m a published author. I make jokes about their votes of confidence being overwhelming, but I also recognize that they haven’t been on the journey I have.

I remember telling one of my brothers when my book got picked up for publication. It wasn’t that he didn’t believe me, but I don’t think it sank in. Months later, when the book was close to release, he asked me where the book would be carried.

“In most major venues,” I answered.

“Yeah, but like, specifically where?”

“Oh you know, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, probably Costco.”

He made a fist and rested it against his lips as he always does when he’s freaking out. “Oh. My. Gooooosh!”

The other reaction that makes me smile is that people are surprised I plan to write more than one book. They think this was like a bucket list goal that I achieved, and now I’ll be satisfied. When I tell them I’m working on a number of projects, it’s like telling people that you just ran a marathon and are beginning training for another: they just can’t understand it.

My journey to publication has been sprawling and varied, but worth every minute of toil. The details of it would fill a book, no pun intended. Now that my debut novel is out, I feel a deep satisfaction I never had in any day job I ever held. And I look toward my future in writing with great hope and eagerness.

Ralph Waldo Emerson believed that any form of creation was the greatest expression of freedom. It takes confidence, creativity, and originality not present in oppressed minds. Here’s to being free enough to create our own worlds, and connect with one another within them. Cheers!


About the author

Liesel K. Hill was born in Oren, Utah. Graduate of Weber State University. Known for writing across three genres: scif/fantasy, historical fiction, and crime drama. Her debut novel, Persistence of Vision came out on January 29th, 2013. If you want to reach her go to the links  below.