"Waiting On" Wednesday #42

"Waiting On" is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

What I'm "Waiting On" this week...

Shannon's Pick~

THE HALLOWED ONES by Laura Bickle
Release Date: September 25th, 2012 from Graphia

Synopsis from Goodreads
If your home was the last safe place on earth, would you let a stranger in?

Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenagers are free to experience non-Amish culture before officially joining the church. But before Rumspringa arrives, Katie’s safe world starts to crumble. It begins with a fiery helicopter crash in the cornfields, followed by rumors and the disappearance of people all over the world. Something is out there...and it is making a killing.

Unsure why they haven’t yet been attacked, the Amish Elders make a decree: No one goes outside their community, and no one is allowed in. But when Katie finds a injured young man lying just outside the boundary of their land, she can’t leave him to die. Refusing to submit to the Elder’s rule, she secretly brings the stranger into her community but what else is she bringing in with him?

OMG! That's was my initial thought when I heard about this book. I'm always looking for something a bit different in the sea of YA books and this one definitely fits that description. 


Carrie's Pick~

SHADOW OF NIGHT by Deborah Harkness
Release Date: July 10th, 2012 from Viking Adult

Synopsis hidden dues to spoilers. Book Two of the All Souls Trilogy and sequel to A Discovery of Witches.


You guys...it is getting closer to July which means my excitement level for this book is reaching a fever pitch. I have been tirelessly convincing people to read A Discovery of Witches in anticipation of the sequel. My job just got a little bit easier because Amazon will be offering the e-book as their “Deal of the Day” on June 10th. So that means if you haven't read it yet and you have a Kindle you will be able to buy it for just $2.99 on that day only. That is great news, so mark your calendars!!

Also on Deborah’s Facebook page, Viking will be hosting a contest leading up to the book’s publication.  Every Friday from June 1st to July 6th, four winners will be selected to receive an advance copy of SHADOW OF NIGHT signed by Deborah and sample bottles of two perfumes specially selected to represent the scents of Matthew and Diana. To enter, click on this link to the contest page.

What are you "Waiting On"?

In My Mailbox #26

Hey everyone, Carrie here again. I am pretty excited about the books in my mailbox this week so I thought I would share.  Here goes...

All books shown are ones I bought or received between May 13th - May 26th. In My Mailbox is a meme created by Kristi@TheStorySiren, its purpose is to encourage blogger interaction, as well as highlight books for our readers. IMM is not only for books you have received through the mail, but also library,borrowed, and bought books.

Gifted (from my boys for Mother's Day):

Glimpse by Carol Lynch Williams

Received for review:

Gold by Chris Cleave

(thanks Simon & Schuster)

Bought:

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Borrowed (from the library):

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Intertwined by Gena Showalter

Changeless by Gail Carriger

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

 

Bought for my Nook:

The Dust of 100 Dogs by A.S. King

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

Well that's it for me. What did ya'll get in your mailboxes?

Author Feature: A Day in the Life of... J. Anderson Coats

We here at Stalking the Bookshelves thought it might be fun to step behind the veil (if you will) and find out what goes on during an average day in the lives of our favorite authors. This will be a new monthly feature so stay tuned to see who else pops on by.

First up is J. Anderson Coats author of The Wicked and the Just.

A Day in the Life...

5:00 - Alarm goes off.  Regret staying up late to get that extra hundred words in.

5:05 - Shower.  Try to remember where I left off in the WIP.

5:30 - Sit down to write.  Mutter barely-coherent thanks to whoever invented the programmable coffee maker.

6:30 - Save the day’s words.  Assign a sticker to the progress log if warranted.  Crowbar surly teenager out of bed.

6:50 - Sneak in some Facebook while surly teenager reluctantly showers.

7:15 - Hold a mostly-one-sided conversation with surly teenager over toast and generic Lucky Charms.

7:30 - See surly teenager off to school.  Answer as many of All Of The Emails as possible before it’s time to punch in at the Day Job.

7:45 - Fire up the Day Job laptop.  Turn my brain over to spreadsheets and industrial supplies.

10:15 - Take a five-minute Twitter break.  Envy writers lucky enough to write full-time.

12:00 - Spend lunch at my desk answering more of All Of The Emails while nibbling on corn chips and carrot sticks.

2:10 - Tea and candy.  Pet the writing laptop as I pass it by.

4:45 - Log out of the Day Job laptop.  Sit outside for fifteen minutes doing absolutely nothing.

5:30 - Dinner with the family.  Reflect on the bright side of having only one steady income: how nice it is to eat someone else’s cooking.

6:30 - Interact with the family.  Perfect my turns in Mario Kart or soak in a little Downton Abbey.

9:00 - Enforce the unpopular doctrine of bedtime.  Smile politely at surly teenager’s mumbled accusations of fascism.

9:30 - Read a chapter of something that I haven’t written.

10:00 - Scrawl down an idea for the WIP that comes to me as I’m falling asleep.  Realize it’s a whole scene.  Get out of bed, find a notebook, scribble down just a hundred more words...

Follow J. Anderson Coats 

At her blog: http://www.jandersoncoats.com/

Or on twitter: https://twitter.com/#%21/jandersoncoats

The Wicked and the Just
Available now from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 

Thanks so much to Jillian for taking time out of her busy schedule (with a new book out) to write this post for us and for letting us get a sneak peek into her writing process. One of our favorite things about blogging is meeting new people and forming fabulous new friendships!

Teaser Tuesday: Anna Dressed in Blood & Glimpse

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page 
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) 
• Share the Title & Author, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Shannon's Teaser:

Anna is looking down at the corpse calmly. Then she looks at me for a long moment before turning her attention back to it. When the door bursts open she doesn't seem to notice, and then I'm being dragged by my shoulders from behind, pulled out of the house and away from the blood, my legs thumping down the front porch steps. When whoever it is lets go of me, they drop me too suddenly on my head, and I don't see anything anymore.

~pg. 78, Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Carrie's Teaser:

I stand

to go to her.

To get to her.

To take care of her.

But Momma, she grabs at my arm,

pinching.

There’s an

animal in my throat

that wants to scream

its way out.

It could tear my

throat apart,

I think.

They get to the door

to the sign

Liz fightingfightingfighting.

~pg. 48, Glimpse by Carol Lynch Williams

 

Cover Reveal: The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron

Last year I met author Sharon Cameron at a Teen Writers Group. She was there alongside her friend and fellow YA writer, Ruta Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray) to talk about their writing process. It was the first time I heard about her upcoming Steampunk novel The Dark Unwinding. She only gave a brief run down of the story but I knew right away that I wanted to read it. Now here we are almost a year later and I feel like a very lucky blogger in getting to reveal it's Final Cover to all of you.

 RD: September 1st, 2012 from Scholastic

Synopsis:
When Katharine Tulman's inheritance is called into question by the rumor that her eccentric uncle is squandering away the family fortune, she is sent to his estate to have him committed to an asylum. But instead of a lunatic, Katharine discovers a genius inventor with his own set of rules, who employs a village of nine hundred people rescued from the workhouses of London.

Katharine is now torn between protecting her own inheritance and preserving the peculiar community she grows to care for deeply. And her choices are made even more complicated by a handsome apprentice, a secretive student, and fears for her own sanity.

As the mysteries of the estate begin to unravel, it is clear that not only is her uncle's world at stake, but also the state of England as Katharine knows it. 

 Pre-Order The Dark Unwinding

B&N / Amazon / The Book Depository

Follow Sharon on her Blog or Facebook page

I want to thank Sharon so much for allowing me to help reveal her novel's cover! What do you all think of it? We'd both love to hear your thoughts

It's Here! The Near Witch in Paperback

It's May 15th and do you know what that means?

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

"If the wind calls at night, you must not listen.
The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.
And there are no strangers in the town of Near."

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.

But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.

The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi's need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.

THE NEAR WITCH by Victoria Schwab come out in paperback TODAY! To help celebrate its release, "The Ash-Born Boy" is finally up over at Disney* Hyperion's website! Here's the link: http://un-requiredreading.com/books/the-ash-born-boy

So, what IS "The Ash-Born Boy"?

It's a free story Victoria wrote as a thank-you to her fans, and she wrote it to answer ONE question: "Who was Cole before he came to Near?"

Now, if you've already read THE NEAR WITCH, "The Ash-Born Boy" is guaranteed to change the way you see Cole.

And if you haven't read THE NEAR WITCH yet, don't worry, "The Ash-Born Boy" won't spoil anything!

So basically, either way, you should go read Cole's story ;)

And if you want to wait and read THE NEAR WITCH first, don't worry! Cole's story will stay up on Disney*Hyperion's website, and if it ever comes down, Victoria will carve out a space for it on her own site. It will always be available somewhere, and it will always be free.

And!

Cole's story isn't the only goodie to go along with the paperback release. In the back of the paperback itself, you'll find the first chapter of Victoria's new book, THE ARCHIVED, which doesn't come out until January!

So what are you waiting for?

Help Victoria celebrate today by taking a look at "The Ash-Born Boy," and don't forget to buy/order/pick up your own paperback copy of THE NEAR WITCH! If you know anything about me or this blog you'll know that I LOVED TNW and I think everyone should read it! If you'd like to read my review of the novel, you can find it here.

Buy a paperback copy of The Near Witch

B&N / Amazon / The Book Depository

Follow Victoria @ her Website: www.victoriaschwab.com 

Blog: www.veschwab.wordpress.com 

Or on Twitter: @veschwab

Bout of Books 4.0 Updates

We are at the starting line...well technically we've kind of past it. Still it has began...and both Carrie & I are participating. We have some lofty goals which you can read about here but this will be the post with all the updates. Throughout the week and most likely in the evening, we will come back here to update our progress with pages and books read.

Updates throughout the day will likely happen on twitter. You can follow Carrie @OneBookishMom and me @StalkintheBooks if you want to read those. If you're participating let us know in the comments.

Carrie's Updates

Monday:
# of pages read today: 198
# of books read today: 1
Total Pages read: 198
Books I've finished: 1 - First Comes Love

Tuesday:
# of pages read today: 291
# of books read today: 1
Total Pages read: 489
Books I've finished: 2 - First Comes Love, Heist Society

Wednesday:
# of pages read today: 55
# of books read today: 1 (read but not completed)
Total Pages read: 544
Books I've finished: 2 - First Comes Love, Heist Society

Thursday:
# of pages read today: 90 and 3 audiobook discs
# of books read today: 3 (1 completed, 2 in progress)
Total Pages read: 634 and 3 audiobook discs
Books I've finished: 3 - First Comes Love, Heist Society, Story of a Girl

Friday:
# of pages read today: 73 and 4 audiobook discs
# of books read today: 2 (both in progress)
Total Pages read: 707 and 7 audiobook discs
Books I've finished: 3 - First Comes Love, Heist Society, Story of a Girl

Saturday:
# of pages read today: 0 (busy day @ the Ogden Marathon)
# of books read today: 0
Total Pages read: 707 and 7 audiobook discs
Books I've finished: 3 - First Comes Love, Heist Society, Story of a Girl

Sunday:
# of pages read today: 190
# of books read today: 1
Total Pages read: 897 and 7 audiobook discs
Books I've finished: 4 - First Comes Love, Heist Society, Story of a Girl, The Near Witch

Friday Mini-Challenge:
Books and Shoes - Take any book you like and match up a character in the book OR the cover of the book to a shoe. The requirement is to only do one pairing, but feel free to do as many as you like.

Lexi from The Near Witch and her father's worn-in brown leather work boots

 

Shannon's Updates

Monday:
# of pages read today: 69
# of books read today: 1
Total Pages read: 69
Books I've finished: N/A

Tuesday:
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Thursday:
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Friday:
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Saturday:
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Sunday:
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Outlander Read-A-Long Sign Up!

The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon--when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach--an "outlander"--in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life...and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

Hey all Carrie here. I'm super excited about the Outlander read-a-thon Jacinda (The Reading Housewives), Asheley (Into the Hall of Books), Jess (Gone with the Words), Logan (Logan E. Turner), Jess (Tangled Up in Blue) & I put together. We were all discussing on twitter our desire to read or re-read Outlander and so this read-a-long was born. I'll be reading it for the first time but whether you've read it a 100 times or not at all, we hope you will sign up and read it with us.

The Outlander Read-A-Long will run 6 weeks due to the length of the book.
 It's 656 pages!
  
Here’s the schedule for the Read-A-Long,
including which blogs are participating as co-hosts:

June 11th

Questions for chapters 1-7 announced at Gone with the Words

June 18th

Questions for chapters 1-7 answered & questions announced for chapters 8-14 at Stalking the Bookshelves

June 25th

Questions for chapters 8-14 answered & questions announced for chapters 15-21 on Tangled up in Blue

July 2nd

Questions for chapters 15-21 answered & questions announced for chapters 22-28 on Into the Hall of Books

July 9th

Questions for chapters 22-28 answered & questions announced for chapters 29-35 on Logan E. Turner

July 16th

Questions for chapters 29-35 answered & questions announced for chapters 36-41 on The Reading Housewives

July 23rd

Questions for chapters 36-41 answered on Gone with the Words. The end.

Each Monday, that week’s host will also have a linky for participants to link-up their discussion questions so everyone can hop from blog to blog and see other reader’s thoughts!

What do you have to do to participate?

• Write up a participation post and link to it in the linky below. This is the official way for you to sign-up. It’s a great way to spread the word to other readers. Feel free to tweet and share the Outlander read-a-long in other outlets as well. (The linky is the same on each host blog. You only need to enter your blog link once)
• Get yourself a copy of the book so you can read-a-long with us! Whether you already own the book, borrow it from the library or end up buying it, there are plenty of ways to get your hands on a copy. 
• Answer the discussion questions that will be posted (see schedule above) and post them on Mondays throughout the months of June and July. Go to the hosts blog, link up your post, and visit other posts to see their thoughts!
• And have fun!

  

  
  

In My Mailbox #25

Hey everyone, Carrie here again. Well Shannon went a little crazy and sent me a box full of books so I have a bit to show off this week. Here goes...

All books shown are ones I bought or received between April 29th - May 12th. In My Mailbox is a meme created by Kristi@TheStorySiren, its purpose is to encourage blogger interaction, as well as highlight books for our readers. IMM is not only for books you have received through the mail, but also library,borrowed, and bought books.

 
Gifted (by Shannon):
Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer
Deception by Lee Nichols
Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers
The Wild Queen by Carolyn Meyer
First Comes Love by Katie Kacvinsky
The Wicked and the Just by J. Anderson Coats
The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting
The Virgin's Daughters: In the Court of Elizabeth I by Jeane Westin
Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls by Mary Downing Hahn
Embrace by Jessica Shirvington
Jane Austen: A Life Revealed by Catherine Reef




Bought for my Nook:
Insurgent by Veronica Roth


  

Borrowed (from the library):
Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles
Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles
The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman (audiobook)

Well that's it for me. What did ya'll get this week?

On a side note: I am trying to find books with tattooed characters to read this month. If you know of some I'd love to hear from you. Thanks!

Bout of Books 4.0 Read-A-Thon Goals

Starting Monday both Carrie & I will be participating in our first Bout A Books. The Read-A-Thon is a week long event (5/14-5/20) which is hosted by Amanda at On A Book Bender. There's challenges, giveaways, twitter meet ups and so much more. If you want to learn more or are interested in signing up go here.

This post is just to state our goals for the week. We plan to put our updates post up on Monday when the read-a-thon starts.

Carrie's TBR pile and Goals:

~Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles

~Heist Society by Ally Carter

~The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell

~First Comes Love by Kate Kacvinsky

~The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

~Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez

~Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

~Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr (ebook)

~My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent (ebook)

My Goal for the read-a-thon is to read 5-7 of the books listed above. Normally I can read 2-3 books in a week so I'm gonna push myself to read more then normal. I work full time so I'll be reading whenever I can (on the train, lunch breaks, etc). I also have a race on Saturday morning which will cut into my reading time a bit. I only picked books that are 305 pages or shorter to better reach my goal.

Shannon's TBR pile and Goals:

~Going to Far by Jennifer Echols

~Catch & Release by Blythe Woolston

~The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

~A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

~The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg

~As You Wish by Jackson Pearce

~First Comes Love by Katie Kacvinsky

~Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

~The Girl in the Park by Mariah Fredericks

~The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

~The Revenant by Sonia Gensler

~Fracture by Megan Miranda

~The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch

~Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

~Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty

My Goal is to read at least 10-12 of these. When I participated in the Dewey's 24 hour read-a-thon I was able to read almost 3 books so I'm hoping with a week I can read a little less then 2 a day. I have a lot going on this Monday and likely won't get much read until Tuesday. Also I plan to try and read either an adult or middle grade book for every 2-3 YA books I read. I like variety and its good to mix it up.

Release Me (Cover Reveals) #17

Our "Release Me" posts focus on upcoming novels that have recently had their covers revealed. We love to help spread the word about new books, so we hope you'll get excited about these. Maybe you'll even discover a few titles you hadn't heard of before. All links go to goodreads so you can find out more about the books and easily add them to your "to-read" pile.

~Lovely, Dark and Deep by Amy McNamara

 RD: November 13th, 2012 from Simon & Schuster

~Over You by Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus

 RD: August 2012 from HarperTeen

~The Encyclopedia of Me by Karen Rivers

RD: September 1st, 2012 from Scholastic

~The Almost Truth by Eileen Cook

RD: December 4th, 2012 from Simon Pulse

~The Other Normals by Ned Vizzini

RD: September 25th, 2012 from Balzer + Bray

~The Girl With Borrowed Wings by Rinsai Rossetti

RD: July 19th, 2012 from Dial

~Darkwater by Catherine Fisher

RD: November 2012 from Dial

 ~Fathomless by Jackson Pearce

RD: September 4th, 2012 from Little Brown BFYR

 ~Incarnation by Emma Cornwall

RD: September 18th, 2012 from Gallery Books

~Sacred by Elana K. Arnold

RD: November 13th, 2012 from Random House Children's Books

 ~Every Day by David Levithan

RD: August 28th, 2012 from Knopf BFYR

 ~My Beautiful Failure by Janet R. Young

RD: November 13th, 2012 from Atheneum BFYR

Had you already seen or heard about most of these books? Find anything new? Which covers do you like best? Which ones have you the most excited? Sound off below!

Carrie's Abridged Reviews

Ok you guys I have to apologize for being a very bad blogger. I have had no motivation to write reviews lately. That doesn’t mean I haven’t been reading because I most certainly have. For some reason (not quite sure what it is however) I just can’t seem to motivate myself to write full length reviews. So I figured in case you were interested in what I have been reading lately I will hit you with the abridged versions. Here goes…

Blackbirds by Chuck Wendig

I have no idea what to rate this book. LOL I am sitting here scratching my head trying to process everything I just read. It is dark and gritty. It is intense and violent. There is no shortage of swear words or sexual references. The cover and the overall concept of the book drew me in but I am definitely not the target audience for this book. I started out really intrigued and sucked in but then after awhile I just wanted off this wild ride. However I stuck it out and finished the book.

The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey –
4 Hearts

The Flight of Gemma Hardy is a retelling of the classic story Jane Eyre (which by the way is one of my favorites). I thought the author did a wonderful job of staying true to the original but putting a twist on some of the story elements to keep it interesting for us that are familiar with the classic. I fell in love with the characters and with the landscape. Scotland came alive in this book.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher – 4 Hearts

I just finished listening to this book. Thirteen Reasons Why drew me in from the get go. I was sucked in and totally invested in Hannah and Clay's stories. I stayed up way too late to see it through. While I feel the concept was well thought out and executed, I just didn't emotionally connect with the characters as I was hoping to. I was expecting this book to bring me to tears but yet it didn't. However, the book has a strong message with valuable information to share so bravo for that!

Vanish by Sophie Jordan – 4 Hearts

I have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to read Vanish ever since finishing Firelight (I was on a HUGE waiting list at the library). Once I got my hands on this book I devoured it as I anticipated. Second books usually hit a snag for me but I found myself pretty caught up in this one. Yes, there are some frustrating elements (i.e. Jacinda and the introduction of a love triangle) but never the less I am hooked on this series.

Waterfall & Cascade by Lisa T. Bergren – 4 Hearts Each

I am thoroughly enjoying this series. Time travel, medieval Italy and handsome knights. What's not to like? Great characters, action and romance. I'm hooked.

Prized by Caragh M. O’Brien – 3 Hearts

Ok I'm kind of torn on this one. I really liked Birthmarked and felt that it had a unique plot for a dystopian. I was excited to read this one and find out what was in store for Gaia and Leon. The positive for me in this book was the author's honest and important stance on a controversial subject. I totally applaud her for this. The downside for me was the characters however. What happened to the characters I loved from the first book? I was just so frustrated with their decision making (especially Gaia). Luckily though, things resolve themselves by the end. I don't have any plans to give up on the series. I am too invested and need to know how everything will play out in the end.

A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin – 4 Hearts

The hubby finally convinced me to read this book. It is definitely a bit out of my reading norm but I'm very glad I read it. It took awhile but it was worth it. I'm very anxious to see what lies ahead for the characters. I have been warned that the next book in the series is bananas. LOL

Slide by Jill Hathaway – 3 Hearts

I thought the premise behind Slide was cool and interesting. It was a quick read and a solid debut.

Blog Tour: The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Cordova

 Welcome to our stop on The Vicious Deep blog tour.

For Tristan Hart, everything changes with one crashing wave.

He was gone for three days. Sucked out to sea in a tidal wave and spit back ashore at Coney Island with no memory of what happened. Now his dreams are haunted by a terrifying silver mermaid with razor-sharp teeth.

His best friend Layla is convinced something is wrong. But how can he explain he can sense emotion like never before? How can he explain he’s heir to a kingdom he never knew existed? That he’s suddenly a pawn in a battle as ancient as the gods.

Something happened to him in those three days. He was claimed by the sea…and now it wants him back.

Buy The Vicious Deep

 Amazon / B&N / The Book Depository

Carrie & I are super excited to share something very unique just for all of you as part of the tour. Zoraida was amazing enough to record a vlog sharing her love for Coney Island. In case you didn't know Coney Island plays a HUGE part in The Vicious Deep but we'll let Zoraida tell you more about that!

You can follow Zoraida at her blog: http://www.zoraidawrites.com 

Or on twitter: @zlikeinzorro

Thanks so much to Zoraida for stopping by our blog!

Spring Blog Carnival: Bouncy Castle

Hi all and welcome to the Bouncy Castle!!! Things are getting awfully mixed up here in the Bouncy Castle and to sort it all out we need your help. Pick out any two elements (characters, locations, plot point, etc.) from two different fairy tales and put them together to form a new one. To be entered in either of our giveaways tell us in the comments what 2 elements you picked and what fairy tale they came from. Don't forget to give your new fairy tale a name.

EX: I take Cinderella's step sisters and the beast from Beauty and the Beast. My new fairytale is called The Beauties Within.

The Bouncy Castle is hosting two giveaways. 

The first giveaway is for a SIGNED paperback of Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce & an ARC of Enchanted by Alethea Kontis. 

This giveaway is open to US/CAN residents ONLY.

The second giveaway is for a Pre-Order of Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson.

This giveaway is open Internationally but TBD MUST ship to your country!!!
Tiger Lily releases on July 3rd.

You must be 13 or older to enter these giveaways and both close May 13th.
Please leave your country of residents, email and challenge answer in the comments. If you live in the US or CAN please let us know if you're entering just one or both of the giveaways. Anyone who doesn't follow these directions will have their entry deleted. Thanks everyone!

Hope you had fun in our Bouncy Castle. Don't forget to check out all the other Spring Blog Carnival Booth for more fun giveaways!