GIRLS ON FIRE!

So there's this box set of 10 fabulous young adult books coming June 16th for only 99 cents! It doesn't get any cheaper than that, folks, so be sure to grab your copy when it becomes available!

Publication date: June 16, 2014

Price: 99 cents for 10 amazing YA novels!

Links:

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22370438-girls-on-fire

Buy links coming soon! We’ll send these out when the boxed set is live and you can leave your reviews. Thanks!

WITCH FALL – Amber Argyle

High Fantasy

Supreme in their dominion over seasons, storms, and sea, the witches have forgotten the unmatched destructiveness of mankind. And among the weapons men seek are the magical songs of the witches. Born of witches but raised among their enemies, Lilette searches for a way to heal the rift between mankind and the witches. But it may be too late to save either. For if there is one thing Lilette has come to know for certain, it’s that all things fall.

ETERNAL STARLING – Angela Corbett

Paranormal Romance

For centuries, Alex Night and Emil Stone have yearned for Evie Starling. When both men claim to be her soul mate and tell her about an unbelievable past, Evie learns that she’s not the person she thought she was, and her soul is about to become the rope in an eternal tug-of-war.

AWAKENING – Christy Dorrity

Fantasy

When an ancient curse threatens McKayla McCleery's family, she must decide what in her life is real and what is fantasy. Based in Celtic mythology, Awakening is a gripping young adult fantasy that is rife with magic, romance, and mystery.

INEVITABLE – Tamara Hart Heiner

Suspense

Visions of death plague Jayne, who thinks watching her sister die is the worst that could happen to her. But when she witnesses a murder, Jayne realizes that the next death she sees might be her own.

WATCHED – Cindy M. Hogan

Romantic Suspense

Change. She longed for it.

A murder. She will never be the same.

THE FORGOTTEN ONES – Laura Howard

Fantasy

ELEMENTAL HUNGER – Elana Johnson

Futuristic Fantasy

Sixteen-year-old Gabriella Kilpatrick can shoot fire from her hands, which would be great if she didn’t get blamed for a blazing inferno that kills 17 schoolmates. Gabby will have to learn who she can trust, how to control her own power, and most of all, how to lead a Council of Elementals, most of whom have more control over their power than she does. If she can’t, she’ll find herself just like those 17 schoolmates: burned and six feet under.

THE FAERIE GUARDIAN – Rachel Morgan

Fantasy

Kickbutt faerie Violet is about to graduate as the top guardian trainee of her class, but when an assignment goes wrong and the human boy she’s meant to be protecting follows her back into the fae realm, a dangerous plot is set in motion.

PERCEPTION – Lee Strauss

Dystopian/Romance

Eternal Life is to Die For.

A spoiled genetically altered girl needs the help of a jaded “natural” boy to find her missing brother.

INTRINSICAL – Lani Woodland

Paranormal

The gene that allows the women in Yara’s family to see and communicate with spirits seems to have passed her over. Until the night she rescues a local hottie from an attacking ghost. Her act of heroism attracts the attention of the evil spirit, and she finds herself entrenched in the middle of a sixty-year-old curse that haunts the school, threatening her own life as well as that of her friends.

About the Authors: 

Follow each author’s link to learn more about them and their books.

Amber Argyle

Angela Corbett

Christy Dorrity

Tamara Hart Heiner

Cindy M. Hogan

Laura Howard

Elana Johnson

Rachel Morgan

Lee Strauss

Lani Woodland

Book Review: The Hallowed Ones

Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenagers can get a taste of the real world. But the real world comes to her in this dystopian tale with a philosophical bent. Rumors of massive unrest on the “Outside” abound. Something murderous is out there. Amish elders make a rule: No one goes outside, and no outsiders come in. But when Katie finds a gravely injured young man, she can’t leave him to die. She smuggles him into her family’s barn—at what cost to her community? The suspense of this vividly told, truly horrific thriller will keep the pages turning.

This was another book recommended by Literary Agent Bree Ogden. I wasn't sure about it at first, and put it off thinking I would connect with Katie, a girl from an Amish community. But I found it interesting to read about this world I really knew nothing about, and how differently she handled things based on her religious beliefs. The story starts just as Katie is preparing for her Rumspringa—a time when the Amish are allowed to visit the "outside world" before they become baptized into their faith and cannot do anything to disobey their community's laws. She's looking forward to this experience with her friend/sometimes-boyfriend Elijah, until they realize there's something very wrong going on in the outside world.

At times I really wanted to strangle Katie for her naivety, but she ended up redeeming herself later on. She's got the biggest heart of anyone in her community, and feels compelled to do what's right, whether or not the Elders in charge approve. It was so interesting to hear about the Amish way—every detail of their community was told so well it's as if the author had actually lived there. There was just the right mix of horror embedded into the story, and these "vampires" are just my type ("holy crap, run for your lives" rather than "sparkling and sexy"). I was completely blown away by just how much I enjoyed the story, considering I was prepared to be bored by the religious aspects before I even picked it up. But Laura Bickle does a wonderful job of holding your interest, making it another hard one to put it down.

This book earns 5 zombies! I was actually glad I put it off so long as the sequel was released a mere week after I finished. Stay tuned for my review on her second book (spoiler alert: it was just as awesome).

Laura Bickle has worked in the unholy trinity of politics, criminology, and technology for several years. She and her chief muse live in the Midwest, owned by four mostly-reformed feral cats.

Her work has been published in Midnight Times, Down in the Cellar, MicroHorror, Theaker's Quarterly Fiction, Ballista, Byzarium, New Myths, a Blog-O-Novella office soap opera for True Office Confessions, and Aoife's Kiss. Her most recent project is the Embers series of urban fantasy novels for Juno-Pocket Books.

Summer Reading Challenge

I just realized this morning how slack I've been online. No video blogs, no Friday "Celebrate the Small Things" posts, nothing.

But I have a good excuse. Despite the fact that we still have snow on the ground and it's nearly May, my children are crazy busy. We've been running non-stop with volleyball, track, dance, confirmation, tae kwon do and that little thing called life.

I know that really doesn't excuse my daytime hours, but those have been filled with a major overhaul on my first novel What I've Done as well as trying to tackle my second zombie book.

And although I obviously love reading just as much as I love writing, I've had very little time for that lately. To remedy this, I've decided to challenge myself to read one book each week this summer (not PER DAY as previously stated *oops*). I'm not talking digital books (because if you watch my vlogs you know how well that goes), but honest to goodness books that I can hold in my hands and turn each page. 

So I've started hoarding books for this challenge (see list on left side of this webpage). Most of them are of the paranormal persuasion, but I'll probably throw a few old fashioned romance stories in the mix to spice things up. Plus there are a couple of John Green's I have yet to read. If you have any recommendations for something that is sure to knock my socks off, leave them in the comment below.

 So while I'm working from our lake home this summer, I plan to at least try to give you a video reviewing a book every week. We'll see how this goes.

I challenge you to set up your own reading goal for this summer. Even once a month would be an awesome goal for anyone who loves to read but can never seem to find enough time. Now if this freaking snow would just melt and it would warm up enough to wear a pair of capris for the first time in 2013, maybe I could actually believe that summer is really on its way...

Writer Wednesday: Emma Meade

I met the lovely and talented Emma Meade through Twitter quite some time back. Although separated by a very large pond, we discovered a mutual passion for anything paranormal/supernatural and I quickly became hooked on Emma's books. While busy preparing to release a sequel to her first vampire novel, Under the Desert Moon, she was kind enough to take a minute to answer a few questions. Because that's how awesome she is.

1. Your new release End of the Line was originally a short story that appeared in The Awakening & Other Stories (a collection of short stories). Are there any others that you think you may possibly turn into a full length novel at some point?

End of the Line is probably my favourite of the whole lot, though The Knocking is a close second. That one is about my Grandad and still gets me when I read it. I'd like to go back to Cassie's story (End of the Line) and see if I can figure out where she went from there. One day - hopefully I'll get back to her. I have so many stories, novels and half completed novels lying around the place, I want to get to them in 2013 and see what I can publish from that lot first.

2. Who or what inspires you as an author?

I get my inspiration from other books, TV shows, films and music - music plays a key role. I love to create imaginary worlds. Some of my characters feel like real people to me.

3. What are some of your favorite books?

I know a lot of people will roll their eyes, but I adore the Twilight books, especially the first one. I found Twilight quite randomly back in 2008. I'd been browsing YouTube looking up fan videos for various TV shows (as far as I can remember) and I stumbled upon a fan video based on the first book. I was so intrigued, I went Googling and hopped it to the nearest bookshop to buy Twilight. I fell in love instantly with Forks and the love story. It took me completely in and will probably always be among my favourite books.

Others I love include Dark Angel and Flowers in the Attic by Virginia Andrews, The Forbidden Game by L.J. Smith, The Stand by Stephen King, anything written by Marian Keyes, and the Tegan's Blood books by L.H. Cosway. (The latter are both amazing Irish authors).

4. From what you've seen, is the publishing world in Ireland different from the United States?

I don't think it's very different. It's obviously on a much smaller scale over here. Some publishers in Ireland will still accept unsolicited manuscripts, but for the most part it's still better to have a literary agent if you're going the traditional route.

5. How many books have you written at this point in your career and what are you working on now?

Hmm, I need to think about this. I guess one novel published and a couple of short story collections. But I also have half a dozen finished and unfinished novels that have yet to be edited and prepared for publishing. I am trying to get into those later this year. Fingers crossed they can be polished enough to see the light of day.

6. If one of your books could be made into a movie, which one would you like to see it happen to and why?

I'd love to see Under the Desert Moon made into a film. I fell in love with the Arizona setting when I wrote it and the characters feel like a part of me. :)

7. What do you like to do in your "down" time?

I don't get much of that - but I guess I like to catch up on my favourite shows like The Walking Dead and The Vampire Diaries. Chilling out with a few friends on a Friday evening and catching up over wine and nibbles is always a good way of winding down. Then I have my two little nieces who don't know the meaning of giving Auntie Emma 'down time'.

8. What are some of your favorite movies and television shows?

Buffy is still my all time favourite TV show, closely followed by Roswell, Friends, The X-Files, The Vampire Diaries and Dark Angel. Movies would have to include Reality Bites, The Last of the Mohicans, The Lost Boys, The Goonies, Stand By Me, Dirty Dancing and Twilight.

9. Are you the type of author that listens to music while you write? If so, what type of music or what songs?

I have to have a quiet space to write usually but I definitely use music to inspire me to write. If I'm stuck or just not feeling it I just put on my iPod and go to the appropriate playlist. That gets the creative juices flowing. The stories about Alex and Tristan from the Night Sighs collection are all down to Bruce Springsteen. Without him, those characters wouldn't be alive.

10. If you could be a character in any book, who would you choose and why?

Jenny from The Forbidden Game by L.J. Smith. She has a darkly gorgeous Shadow Man in love with her willing to give her the world, in fact all nine of them.

11. If the zombie apocalypse were to happen, who would you choose (real or fictional) for your survival team?

My Dad, Buffy, Willow, Rick and Daryl (The Walking Dead), Max and Alec (Dark Angel) and the aliens from Roswell. :)

To win a digital copy of Emma's collection of short stories, The Awakening & Other Stories, enter Rafflecopter giveaway below!

Ways to follow Emma: Twitter, Goodreads, her website

Where to find her book: Amazon, Barnes & Noble 

Emma Meade lives in Ireland and loves vampires, slayers, witches, ghosts, aliens & shadow men (or at least the youngest of the Shadow Men), and regular people who live extraordinary lives (think Slayerettes and you’re on the right track). Writing supernatural short stories, watching marathon re-runs of Buffy and attempting to complete novels are some of her favourite ways of escaping reality.

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The Walking Dead Recap & Giveaways

My Walking Dead peeps - what did you think of the mid-season premiere? Were you both as pleased and frustrated as I was? Allow me to go on my own little rant. There are SPOILERS in my recap, so if you haven't seen last night's episode, please skip ahead!

First of all, I teared up when Maggie made the first shot at Crazyville. So refreshing to have a female hero for once! But why didn't someone shoot Merle, if even "by accident"? How many chances do they have to give that dirt-bag a-hole before they realize he will kill them the second the opportunity arises? If I were Glen, I would've shot him on first sight. Daryl would've gotten over it. Instead, Rick knocked Merle out and Daryl smirked in response. Did everyone catch that?

As a huge Daryl/Norman Reedus fan, I was ticked to see him choose his idiot brother over the gang. But I was pleased with the fact that Daryl somewhat acknowledged that he feels something for Carol by telling Rick that she'd understand. When Rick broke the news to Carol, however, I may have shed a tear or two. I'm really digging the love story between the two and I hold on to hope that they will again be reunited when Daryl realizes what an idiot he is. As someone on Twitter mentioned, maybe Daryl will find an old school boom box and hold it over his head when he comes back for her. One can only hope...

Courtesy of AMC

In other Walking Dead drama, the Governor has obviously snapped after being humiliated in front of his followers while Andrea has seemingly stepped up to take charge. What I want to know is what was the Governor doing in his apartment, anyway? We've seen the kind of sick things he's capable of, so it made me a wee bit nervous to know he's angry and keeping out of sight.

Glen and Maggie are feeling awkward around each other. My guess is that Glen is having a hard time dealing with his very first real anger rant, knowing the Governor almost raped his girlfriend. After watching the marathons yesterday and seeing the two of them get it on in the watch tower, it occurred to me - what if Maggie gets pregnant now? Even worse, what if Andrea became pregnant with the Governor's baby? Taking care of a baby without the whole apocalypse thing is hard enough - how will this gang ever handle the one they already have? They can't even keep the adults safe. If these people were smart, they would practice abstinence as a rule of thumb.

Aaaaand, last but not least by any means, we see the Ricktatorship taking a fatal dive into insanity when the man envisions his wife standing watch over them and he starts yelling at her. Wherever Season 3 takes us, we know there isn't hope for Rick's mental health any time soon. Becoming that crazy doesn't just go away overnight - at least not without some Lithium or shock therapy. And somehow I don't think Herschel's veterinarian skills will be of any help this time.

It's certainly going to be interesting to see the Gov take on the Rickster when both of them seem to have completely gone off the deep end. I just hope the others are smart enough to get the hell out of Dodge before it happens. Regardless, I think the second half of the third season is going to be mind-blowing.

On to other news...

There are two separate giveaways going on right now to win a digital copy Shymers! Swing by my hilarious friend London Cole's blog to learn a little more about me and see what the fabulous Daniela at YA Book Season has to say in her review of my dystopian adventure.

YA Book Season

Author London Cole

Writing Things That Go Bump in the Night

Another confession: I love creepy things.

Okay not that kind of creepy (although I do totally adore this song and anything Andy Samberg or The Lonely Island create). But for the purpose of this post, I'm talking creepy like Se7en or Silence of the Lambs kind of creepy. You know, the kind that makes you look behind you twice before you run up the basement steps or the kind that plays tricks on your mind, making you think you're seeing things that aren't really there.

My fourth book has completely transformed from the story of a teenage girl whose life goes terribly wrong and falls in love with the wrong guy to the story of a teenage girl who sees ghosts, almost dies and has dark things chasing after her soul.

Yep, I'm writing scary stories again.

And I didn't realize before now just how much I missed it. My third book Shymers was a break away from the dark undertone of the first two, which was fine because I really enjoyed the change of pace. Don't worry, dear readers, I am still writing a sequel to it later on this year, but first will come this story that has undergone a major overhaul and is so much better than it originally started out to be.

With a change of plot also comes a change of title. What was once Falling Away has now become Cheating Death. And a cover reveal is on its way really soon! I did not do the photography on this one as I was set on using a picture of a girl underwater and I found an amazing image that I think is both beautiful and chilling - can't wait to show you guys!

In the meantime, I've traded some of my daytime hours of writing into nighttime so I can set the right mood. Yes that makes me way more jumpy (the other night I was seriously seeing things that weren't there, just like my character) and yes that means I will most likely be more irritable and have a harder time getting kids off to school in the morning, but in the end it will have been totally worth it.

At least I hope. Because I'm super tired and need a really long night's sleep.

Amazon's Top 10 Children's eBooks for 2012

I wanted to share this list I came across today of the best selling ebooks in 2012. I didn't post the top ten adult as I write for young adults, plus I couldn't stomach seeing 50 Shades of Grey twice in one list. Of these ten I have only read Insurgent and The Fault in Our Stars (which was mind-blowingly amazing). Have you read any? What do you think will be on the best selling list of 2013?

Insurgent (Divergent) by Veronica Roth  (952) Kindle Price: $7.29 The Mark of Athena (The Heroes of Olympus, Book Three) by Rick Riordan  (1,418) Kindle Price: $8.00 The Serpent's Shadow (The Kane Chronicles, Book Three) by Rick Riordan  (343) Kindle Price: $9.99 The Fault in Our Stars by John Green  (1,552) Kindle Price: $10.99 While It Lasts by Abbi Glines  (369) City of Lost Souls (Mortal Instruments) by Cassandra Clare  (346) Kindle Price: $8.89 CRASH by Nicole Williams  (243) Because of Low (Sea Breeze) by Abbi Glines  (193)

Movie Review: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (in Every Way!)

To tell you the truth, I'm a big fan of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but I wasn't nearly as excited about this movie. I tried reading the book and it nearly bored me to tears. Whenever as a story is told with an attempt to make each sentence a work of poetry instead of just spitting it out, my eyes glaze over (and I totally realize that I'm well within the minority on that). With the exception of Samwise Gamgee (it's even a fond nickname I use for my daughter), I'm not a fan of the hobbit characters. In fact, they were my least favorite characters of the series.

So did I like The Hobbit, or not? Before I give my official review, here's a rundown of my comments while watching it (yes I used my phone in the theatre, but I had the glow completely contained inside my purse - my son didn't even know I was using it and he sat right next to me - so chill out already):

I have a feeling this is going to bore me to tears.

Wait, is this a musical?

Why do these movies always have to include giant, creepy spiders?

Seriously, does Cate Blanchett age?

(One from my son: Wait, what is Count Dooku doing in this movie?)

Why are there always super high mountains with super narrow cliffs in these movies?

Storm giants totally remind me of those boxing robots.

Obviously another movie made by "grown" boys.

I'd take on Voldemort any day over the creepy one-handed ogre dude.

For someone who's terrified of heights, I've spent a third of this movie fearing a heart attack.

Why did we have to see this in 3D again?

Smeagol seriously needs to see a psychiatrist.

Ah, so that's how all this ring stuff started. Why didn't they tell us this before?

Okay, so I guess this IS a musical. Starring Smeagol.

Big birds you can ride and now a fire-breathing dragon? Hello, Harry Potter rip-off!

Based on these comments, one would probably guess I hated this movie. But I didn't. In fact, was surprised just how much I loved it! By the last scene, I realized I like it even more than any of the LoTR movies. I even adored Bilbo Baggins - a hobbit! While there were a lot of same elements from the LoTR as well as reoccurring characters and places, the overall feel of the movie was somewhat different. A lot of it had to do with the almost all new cast of dwarfs that led the story. They were a mix of brave, comical and lovable characters. Throw the charismatic Gandalf and a new-and-improved, younger version of Bilbo and you have your heroes of the story. There were certainly more light-hearted scenes compared to the LoTR trilogy, which is probably a given considering we're dealing with the most comical characters of the series. I'll admit the signing made me roll my eyes by the second song. At least they were all relatively short. And the last two melodies, sung by Smeagol (who doesn't love that creepy bastard) and the goblin king with a nasty goiter, actually made me laugh.

It's not my style to review movies and books by picking apart every aspect and scene. Bottom line is that if you're a fan of the fantasy-type movies, I think it's safe to say you will definitely enjoy this one. Even most fans of Harry Potter would probably appreciate this tale, although for children you should be aware that there are some scenes with Smeagol and the goblins that were a little freaky for my 10-year-old. I think "An Unexpected Journey" was a perfect title for this little gem. Definitely not what I was expecting from a Baggins.

NaNoWriMo 2012 - Major Success!

Once again this year, I made the commitment to participate in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). What's this madness you ask? For the sane people out there, NaNoWriMo is a free for all in which hundreds of thousands of writers commit to put 50k words into a new story during the month of November. Although I hit the magic number about a week ago (not surprisingly, I'm still waiting for the champagne and confetti), I kept on charging ahead. While technically I still have today to keep working on it (and I plan to, believe me), my word count is over 68k.

My friends on Twitter have been saying how amazed they are that I have such a high word count. You have to take in consideration, however, that I did leave my office job over a year ago to write full time, so it's not the great feat it was last year when I had to steal every second of my social life to finish. Still, it's not as easy-peasy as one would think. Writers face many obstacles like gaping plot holes, a drive to delete and self-edit, and the dreaded writer's block.

One of the rules of NaNoWriMo is that you can't go back and rewrite/edit/delete at any time during the month. When I first participated last year, this about killed me as I was infamous for going back and rewriting when something bothered me. But once I got past it and kept moving forward, I was able to finish my first novel in over a decade. Keep in mind, dear reader, that a story is not done by any means just because you've written 50,000 words. My first published book, What I've Done, was a product of last year's NaNoWriMo. I continued writing it for a month or two after NaNoWriMo was over. Next it was sent to my editor for ideas, then I engaged in some major rewrites. By the time the story was finished in March, the total word count was over 75,000.

But the great thing about NaNoWriMo if you're a full-time author is that it really gives you a boost on your next novel. The new story that I'm working on involving mind control (title still in progress) has just exploded out of my fingertips and taken on a life of its own. The tale begins with a girl named Kianna having strange things happen to her on her eighteenth birthday. It gets out of control to the point where she actually entertains the idea that there is such thing as a birthday fairy (as Kianna says in her own defense, "Like mind control is any more believable?"). I hope you will see this story come to live early spring of 2013.

To all the fans who have been razzing me about writing sequels, The Day Zombies Ruined My Perfectly Boring Life is up next and the sequel to Shymers will be one or two after that. I truly appreciate the great feedback and reviews I've been getting on these books and apologize for leaving you hanging with the giant cliffhangers! But be patient, my friends, and hopefully you'll be blown away by what happens next!

So what exactly is the prize for NaNoWriMo you ask? Nothing. Unless, of course, you count a whole world filled with shiny new characters for readers to enjoy and an unbelievable feeling of accomplishment. As a writer, I can't imagine anything better (well, other than maybe a movie deal or an around the world signing tour).

My Serious Anxiety

I'm one of those people who doesn't just like something and think it's good, but totally falls head over heels in love and obsesses over it, whether it's a movie, book, song, whatever. I will go an entire week listening to the same song on repeat. If I watch a favorite movie for the tenth time my mind will often get so lost in the story it's disturbing when I have to come back to reality. I guess that makes me either extremely weird or extremely passionate. But that passion sometimes comes with a price - something I call my "favorite overload".

A prime example of this is when I go into a book store. The second I step foot inside I am slammed with major anxiety. I'm not talking "gee there are so many books in here, this is awesome" but jittery-wandering-about-the-store-like-I'm-a-zombie-because-I-can't-freaking-focus-long-enough-to-know-where-to-begin-and-my-heart-is-going-to-leap-from-my-chest anxiety. It really sucks. Last time I think I even had a rash on my neck by the time I left and I have never broken out in hives before that I can remember. There is simply not enough time in the day for me to read all the books that are accumulating in my to-read list. I try to sneak reading time in at night, but often fall asleep and have the typical "kindle crashing down on my face" syndrome.

To cut down on this particular "favorite overload" I try to stick mostly to eBooks and avoid bookstores at all costs. For some reason, public libraries aren't quite as traumatic for me. I've gotten better about actually borrowing books, if you can believe there are just places that loan you a book for free. Besides, my physical bookshelves are so full they're beginning to bow down in the middle. If we ever build a new house, you can bet there will be a full-blown library somewhere in there with velvet lounge chairs for reading. The one below would do just fine.

Maybe I just confessed to all of you that I have some serious kind of mental disorder, or maybe I just proved that I'm a hard core author because it seems most authors I've met have personality quirks. It doesn't matter because I learned my lesson when taking depression meds and wasn't able to write for years while on it. But my point is, sometimes when you feel passionately about something, it can physically effect you in ways you would never have imagined.

What are some of your anxieties or passions?