Top 10 of 2019: New or New-to-Me Authors

Top 10 of 2019 is hosted once again by Kimberly Faye Reads, and this year she has a co-host Ginger @greadsbooks.   This second topic, new or new-to-me authors, is so hard!  Between the new authors I read as part of the whole launch of SmartyPants Romance, or the ARCs of debut authors I get, it's so hard to choose!  So some of these may be a little bit of a cheat and have more than one author.  In fact, I think I'll do like last year and at least even narrow down into romance and YA authors, 10? of each.

Romance:

1. 

First is Julia Kent.  Now, while I'd actually read one of her books under her other writing name, Meli Raine, as a free e-book a few years ago, Fluffy was the first I read under the name Julia Kent.  And it cracked me up so much!  I've loved all the books in that series so far.  I actually just finished listening to the 4th book in the Shopping for a Billionaire series yesterday, and I love it too!  Most of that series is part of the Audible Escape package, so that's how I'm enjoying them. 

My review of Fluffy is HERE.


2.

I read this one by Monica Murphy this year.  It was good, and I look forward to more in the future!

My review is HERE.



3.

I think all the rest of the authors I'll share under romance will be from SmartyPants Romance, like this one from Piper Sheldon. 

My review is HERE.

4.

When I saw this sitting on one of the tables at Book Bonanza this past August, I had to buy it since I'm a librarian, so I did get to meet the author, L.B. Dunbar, and then I was also introduced to her writing!

My review is HERE.

5.

I had to read all the books in the library series, so this one I got to read as part of a blog tour, and loved it as well!  It was probably my favorite of all of them.  Sabrina's shyness, the funny nerdy quotes, like "for the love of Dumbledore!".  Nora Everly is going to be someone I read a lot of in the future I hope! 

My review is HERE.

6.

I think this was my favorite in the Donner Bakery series from the SmartyPants Romance launch.  I think it is the author, Ellie Kay's, only book so far, but again, I look forward to more! 

My review is HERE.

7.

And another in the library series.  Normally I am not a big fan of the motorcycle club books, but this one was okay because of how awesome the librarian stuff was.  Cathy Yardley did a great job! 

My review is HERE.

8.

So much in this one that I liked as well, and I'm interested in reading more by Jiffy Kate.  It made me want to pack up and move myself to a place like Green Valley, I wished there was a real Green Valley!  It also kind of got me thinking maybe I want to work one of my stories into a way it could fit into the Green Valley world and possibly be part of the SmartyPants Romance group! 

My review is HERE.

9.

I loved this book.  All the stuff about being overweight and dealing with that was true.  How people look right through you, etc.  M.E. Carter responded to tweets I posted and Instagram posts as well.  Definitely looking forward to more by this author as well! 

My review is HERE.

10.

So, I actually read this earlier this year from a partner I found on a website called Critique Match when I was looking for someone to help me critique my short story.  I didn't actually know if she was published or not, hadn't heard of her, but read and loved her story to help her.  I wondered as I read if she was, because the story was so good! Then I found it posted as a book coming out this month, and I jumped on the blog tour to help promote it.  I'm currently "re-reading" the finished copy to post a full review here tomorrow!


YA Authors:
1.

I recently read and loved this book by Cookie O'Gorman.  I need to read more by this author now!  

My review is HERE.

2.

My first Hannah Moskowitz book was a hit!  

My review is HERE.

3.

So, I was supposed to read The Replacement Crush by Lisa Brown Roberts when it came out, but I didn't get to it. I signed up to do a blog tour for this one, and now I have to go back and read that one!  

My review is HERE.

4.

A good debut for Charlotte Nicole Davis, although the ending wasn't the best for me.  

My review is HERE.

5.

Yet another debut author, Brittney Morris, and I can't wait to see more from her in the future!  

My review is HERE.

6.

Natasha Diaz is another debut author I'm highly recommending!  

My review is HERE.

7.

While this is Chelsea Bobulski's second novel, it is the first one I've read, and I really liked how original she was with her ghost story and the way to see through it.  

My review is HERE.

8.

Another debut author I read this year was Autumn Krause, and it was a kind of original slant on a story that is similar to others I've read.  

My review is HERE.

9.

Another awesome 2019 debut author, I look forward to the sequel to this unique fantasy novel by Kalyn Josephson.  

My review is HERE.

10.

A great cult type of story that I really liked, Shannon Schuren will be on my watch list for future titles.  

My review is HERE.


Tell me, are any of these authors new to you?  Or are any old favorites?  What new or new-to-you authors did you read this year?

If you're interested in joining in to the Top 10 of 2019, you can go to the links at the top for the hosting blogs.  Here are the other topics you'll see coming up:

Also, while you're here, make sure you go enter into my weekly Cleaning Up My TBR Giveaway HERE.  It's open till Friday night at midnight!

Blog Tour Review with Giveaway: Color Me In by Natasha Diaz

Book info:

Title:  Color Me In
Author:  Natasha Diaz
Genre:  YA contemporary, #ownvoices
Release Date:  August 20th, 2019
Publisher:  Delacorte Press
Source:  ARC received from publisher which did not influence my opinion
My rating:  5 stars

Synopsis:

Debut YA author Natasha Diaz pulls from her personal experience to inform this powerful coming-of-age novel about the meaning of friendship, the joyful beginnings of romance, and the racism and religious intolerance that can both strain a family to the breaking point and strengthen its bonds.

Who is Nevaeh Levitz?

Growing up in an affluent suburb of New York City, sixteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz never thought much about her biracial roots. When her Black mom and Jewish dad split up, she relocates to her mom's family home in Harlem and is forced to confront her identity for the first time.

Nevaeh wants to get to know her extended family, but one of her cousins can't stand that Nevaeh, who inadvertently passes as white, is too privileged, pampered, and selfish to relate to the injustices they face on a daily basis as African Americans. In the midst of attempting to blend their families, Nevaeh's dad decides that she should have a belated bat mitzvah instead of a sweet sixteen, which guarantees social humiliation at her posh private school. Even with the push and pull of her two cultures, Nevaeh does what she's always done when life gets complicated: she stays silent.

It's only when Nevaeh stumbles upon a secret from her mom's past, finds herself falling in love, and sees firsthand the prejudice her family faces that she begins to realize she has a voice. And she has choices. Will she continue to let circumstances dictate her path? Or will she find power in herself and decide once and for all who and where she is meant to be?

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, Barnes and Noble, iBooks, Kobo, TBD

My Review:
This is definitely going to be one of the best books I've read this year.  There was so much to this story, things that if you aren't in that situation, you have no idea about what really happens.  Knowing that the author grew up with this type of life totally made this stand out so much for me.  But not only was it a really deep look at that, it totally was a teenager's story.  First off, as much as Nevaeh was going through herself, she soon had to realize that she wasn't the only one going through things.  Her friends were; her family, including her cousins, mother, aunt, uncle, grandpa, were all going through stuff. And not just them, but even people like her rabbi that was helping her go through to get ready for her bat mitzvah.  There was also poetry in the book, poetry that the main character was fitting to her current feelings and situation.  Nevaeh also found her mother's diary, and for her to see what led up to her mom and dad getting together, as well as what her mom dealt with as a teenager was so perfect for this story.  

Personally, at my age, it really stood out to me that now we have stories about teenagers who their parents were young when 9/11 happened.  As someone who was a teacher at the time, that really makes me feel even older.  But reminds me of all the things that I hear my parents talk about that I wasn't alive for, but that was such a major event in their lives.




About the Author:

Natasha Díaz is a born and raised New Yorker, currently residing in Brooklyn, NY with her tall husband. She spends most of her days writing with no pants on and alternating between E.R. and Grey’s Anatomy binges. Formerly a reality TV producer, Natasha is both an author and screenwriter. Her scripts have placed as a quarterfinalist in the Austin Film Festival and a finalist for both the NALIP Diverse Women in Media Fellowship and the Sundance Episodic Story Lab. Her essays can be found in The Establishment and Huffington Post. Raised by a first generation half-Liberian/half-Brazilian mother and a Jewish-American father, Natasha writes stories about people who don’t fit into the boxes society imposes, and instead, create their own as they search for their places in the world. Her first novel, Color Me In, will be published by Delacorte Press/Random House August, 20 2019.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads

 
Giveaway:

• 3 winners will receive a finished copy of COLOR ME IN, US Only.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

8/1/2019- Kait Plus Books- Excerpt

8/2/2019- Utopia State of Mind- Review

Week Two:

8/5/2019- Lifestyle of Me- Review

8/6/2019- Country Road Reviews- Review

8/7/2019- Mythical Books- Excerpt

8/8/2019- BookHounds YA- Review

8/9/2019- Books and Ladders- Review

Week 3:

8/12/2019- Wonder Struck- Review

8/13/2019- dwantstoread- Review

8/14/2019- My Creatively Random Life- Excerpt

8/15/2019- Confessions of a YA Reader- Excerpt

8/16/2019- Jena Brown Writes- Review

Week 4:

8/19/2019- We Live and Breathe Books- Review

8/20/2019- Eli to the nth- Excerpt

8/21/2019- A Gingerly Review- Review

8/22/2019- Novel Novice- Excerpt

8/23/2019- Owl Always Be Reading- Excerpt

Week 5:

8/26/2019- Lisa Loves Literature- Review

8/27/2019- Book-Keeping- Review

8/28/2019- PopTheButterfly Reads- Review

8/29/2019- Two Chicks on Books- Excerpt

8/30/2019- Two points of interest- Review

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Lisa's Looking Foward To #26 - August 20th, 2019

Back to joining up with the Waiting on Wednesday Posts, and the Can't Wait Wednesday posts hosted by Wishful Endings.  This week there are three on my list.

From my ARC list for August 20th:

Really sounds like a fun read!  Very time appropriate as well.

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:

Equal parts Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl and Jennifer Mathieu’s Moxie, this fiercely crafted feminist YA novel takes on fandom, accountability, and doing the right thing. Even when it hurts.

Lainey wouldn’t mind lugging a camera around a video game convention for her brother, aka YouTube superstar Codemeister, except for one big problem. He’s funny and charming online, but behind closed doors, Cody is a sexist jerk.

SamTheBrave came to this year’s con with one mission: meeting Codemeister—because getting his idol’s attention could be the big break Sam needs.

ShadowWillow is already a successful streamer. But when her fans start shipping her with Code, Shadow concocts a plan to turn the rumors to her advantage.

The three teens’ paths collide when Lainey records one of Cody’s hateful rants on video. Because she’s determined to spill the truth to her brother’s fans—even if that means putting Sam and Shadow in the crosshairs.

Told through three relatable voices and arriving on the heels of the author’s widely praised debut novel, Kat and Meg Conquer the World, this sophomore novel is a nuanced and timely story about followers, fame, and fighting for what’s right.

Sound good?  Add to Goodreads HERE. 
 

I've got an ARC  of this one and will be part of a blog tour the week after this comes out, so look out for my review on August 26th I think!

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:

Debut YA author Natasha Díaz pulls from her personal experience to inform this powerful coming-of-age novel about the meaning of friendship, the joyful beginnings of romance, and the racism and religious intolerance that can both strain a family to the breaking point and strengthen its bonds.

Who is Nevaeh Levitz?

Growing up in an affluent suburb of New York City, sixteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz never thought much about her biracial roots. When her Black mom and Jewish dad split up, she relocates to her mom's family home in Harlem and is forced to confront her identity for the first time.

Nevaeh wants to get to know her extended family, but one of her cousins can't stand that Nevaeh, who inadvertently passes as white, is too privileged, pampered, and selfish to relate to the injustices they face on a daily basis as African Americans. In the midst of attempting to blend their families, Nevaeh's dad decides that she should have a belated bat mitzvah instead of a sweet sixteen, which guarantees social humiliation at her posh private school. Even with the push and pull of her two cultures, Nevaeh does what she's always done when life gets complicated: she stays silent.

It's only when Nevaeh stumbles upon a secret from her mom's past, finds herself falling in love, and sees firsthand the prejudice her family faces that she begins to realize she has a voice. And she has choices. Will she continue to let circumstances dictate her path? Or will she find power in herself and decide once and for all who and where she is meant to be?

Sound good?  Add to Goodreads HERE.

I think I've been seeing some reviews of this one around lately, and definitely interested!

Here is the blurb from Goodreads:

A timely, searing, and unconventional romance from an urgent new voice in young adult fiction

In one impulsive moment the summer before they leave for college, overachievers Scarlett and David plunge into an irresistible swirl of romance, particle physics, and questionable decisions. Told in non-linear, vivid first-person chapters, As Many Nows As I Can Get is the story of a grounded girl who's pulled into a lightning-strike romance with an electric-charged boy, and the enormity of the aftermath. Cerebral, accessible, bold, and unconventionally romantic, this is a powerful debut about grief, guilt, and reconciling who you think you need to be with the person you've been all along.

Sound good?  Add to Goodreads HERE. 

  
Final Thoughts:
Have you read any of these yet?  Are they on your TBR?  I don't have a Cleaning Up my TBR giveaway this week due to my exciting weekend at Book Bonanza, which I need to make up a post for soon!