Blog Tour Author Interview with Giveaway: Love, Cutter by Michelle Jester

Book info:
Title:  Love, Cutter
Author:  Michelle Jester
Publication date: August 28th 2018
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult

Synopsis:

After an attempted suicide Carter finds himself in a coma. He is able to hear the world around him, yet he can’t move. What he hears propels Carter to begin to see life in a new way, especially when one of his nurses, Kinley, shares parts of her tragic past with him. Soon, Carter realizes he is falling in love with her.

Months after being transferred from the hospital, to a rehabilitation facility, he suddenly wakes up with a passion to live that he never had before and a determination to find the one person he feels may be able to help him put the pieces of his life together again. However, when he returns to the hospital, Kinley is gone and Carter must try to find her based solely on the things she shared with him while he was in a coma.

Only, nothing is as it seems and Carter learns the biggest lesson of them all… the differences between expectation, perception, and reality.

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Author Interview:
1.  What does your writing process look like? Do you know the whole story when you start?  Or do you just start writing and go with it (seat of the pants writing)?  If you plan it out, how do you do that?  Outline, notecards, post-it-notes, etc.? 
 
I actually start with writing the basic story in three or four pages, extremely generalized. Then, I fill in the outline as I write the book. I don’t want to become constricted on certain things and I like the story to evolve naturally. I did try to do the outline first thing, once, simply because so many people suggested it, however, I found it really weighed me down and I quickly ditched that idea. As I write and fill in the outline, then it’s easier to refine the story and tie up any loose ends.
 
2. Do you edit as you go, or wait till you're finished before you edit?  How many times would you say you go over it yourself before having another set of eyes look it over?

I wait to really edit it until I’m done with the first half or so. When I go back to read sometimes I’ll edit a bit as I go. Once the story is “done” then I read it four or five times before I hand it off to the first editor. 

3.  Are you part of a writers group that gets together and helps each other with their writing?

No, I’m not part of a writers group. I do have several author friends, however we don’t help each other as a basic rule simply because every writer is different and we all feel that should reflect in our work. 

4.  How do you come up with your ideas for your stories?

Most all of my stories over the years stem from personal experiences. I originally wrote these novels only for myself because writing is one of my outlets.

5.  How long have you been writing?

I’ve been writing since I was ten years old.

6.  What tips do you have for aspiring writers?

BE YOURSELF. Have your own voice and writing style. You’ll have people who love it and you’ll have people who hate it, but I’ve learned in life if everyone hates it or everyone loves it, then you are doing it wrong. Stay true to your own voice (USE PROFESSIONAL EDITORS) and you’ll always be proud of your work. 

7.  How important are names in your books?  Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds, or the meaning?  Do you have any name choosing resources you recommend? 

I pick my names for various reasons. Main character names are already chosen for the next nine novels. However, additional names aren’t. Sometimes, I go to one of my social media pages, refresh and the first name that pops up gets in the book!
 

Author Bio:

Michelle Jester lives in Greenwell Springs, Louisiana with her husband, high school sweetheart and retired Master Sergeant. Together they have a son and daughter. She is a hopeless romantic and has been writing poems and stories for as long as she can remember.

One of her prize possessions is a bracelet with only a yellow, Rubber Duckie charm on it; which she wears every day to remind her to enjoy the fun and happy things of life!

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Review: Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe by Preston Norton

Book info:

Title:  Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe
Author:  Preston Norton
Genre:  YA Contemporary
Release Date:  June 5th, 2018
Publisher:  Disney-Hyperion
Source:  Physical ARC received from publisher which affected my opinion in no way
My rating:  5 stars

Synopsis:
Cliff Hubbard is a huge loser. Literally. His nickname at Happy Valley High School is Neanderthal because he's so enormous-6'6" and 250 pounds to be exact. He has no one at school and life in his trailer park home has gone from bad to worse ever since his older brother's suicide.

There's no one Cliff hates more than the nauseatingly cool quarterback, Aaron Zimmerman. Then Aaron returns to school after a near-death experience with a bizarre claim: while he was unconscious he saw God, who gave him a list of things to do to make Happy Valley High suck less. And God said there's only one person who can help: Neanderthal.

To his own surprise, Cliff says he's in. As he and Aaron make their way through the List, which involves a vindictive English teacher, a mysterious computer hacker, a decidedly unchristian cult of Jesus Teens, the local drug dealers, and the meanest bully at HVHS--Cliff feels like he's part of something for the first time since losing his brother. But fixing a broken school isn't as simple as it seems, and just when Cliff thinks they've completed the List, he realizes their mission hits closer to home than he ever imagined.

My Review:
Wow, this book totally blew me away!  I picked it up while on vacation, and read straight through the first 92 pages in no time!  I was laughing out loud and just enjoying it so much!  Having a six year old niece on vacation meant that Auntie had to spend lots of time with her.  But whenever I got the chance to pick this up, I was lost and couldn't put it down.  The characters were so great.  When it was pitched to me as a post-millenial Breakfast Club, I was a bit skeptical, but in the end, it really kind of worked out that way!  Cliff was really a bit oblivious, but partly because his brother had recently killed himself.  And then there was the popular boy, Aaron, the one who got "the list" from God that had to be completed, and that he needed Cliff to help with.  Which really, the two of them just gotten in a big fist-fight right before this all happened.  Then you had the local drug dealers that hung out in front of the school, the girl who seemed to do nothing but proposition Cliff all the time.  She gets into the whole mix-up with the list, and you fall in love with her.  The bully, gets what he probably deserves, but also falls in at one point. Then there is the brother of the leader of the Jesus Teens.  He is gay, and keeps trying to start a Gay-Straight Alliance group at the school, but his sister has gotten the school to ban all after school groups that are not "class-related".  And that is something that becomes a big focus point for Aaron and Cliff with the list.  Then the meanest teacher, think of the one in the movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and that's who you've got here.  

All of the characters were just perfect.  There were some points that had me crying, but then those tears were often replace with huge laughs from the banter between the characters.  When Aaron and Cliff try to help out with the teacher problem, they end up going to mow his lawn.  I was just about rolling on the floor with that bit!  The teacher threatened to call the cops on them for mowing his lawn, something his home owner's association had actually been posting letters on his door about.  I'm not explaining it that great, you've got to pick this book up and read it.

Now, I know there will probably be changes to the book before the finished product hits the shelves. But there was one page that I was reading while I was sitting at Wendy's eating on my travels back home from vacation, and I had to take a picture of it because I couldn't believe all the hilariousness in this one page!   So I'm sharing that page below.  But just know that it could change before the finished copy, since this was an advanced reader's copy.  

I don't know, maybe you have to read it and be in the whole scene to get it.  But the "brown" belt comment.  And then the part about the iPhone, which I'm an iPhone user, but it still cracked me up!  

I cannot WAIT to put this book in my school library next year.  I can't wait to share it with a teacher I work with.  It has all different kinds of people.  Rich, poor, Christian, nerdy, techy, popular, gay, depressed, socially awkward, popular, you name it, that character is in here, and they are portrayed in such a great way.  

There's a twist with the brother that I had a bit of an idea of what it might be, but liked the direction the author took it in.  Also, it's not just the main characters, but there are so many quirky side characters you have to just laugh at.  Like Cliff's mother's boss at the video store.  And the principal is great, and just so many great characters in this story.  

If you don't pick this one up, you'll regret it, hope you get a chance to do that soon! 

Review: The Beauty that Remains by Ashley Woodfolk

Book info:

Title:  The Beauty that Remains
Author:  Ashley Woodfolk
Genre:  YA Contemporary
Release Date:  March 6th, 2018
Publisher:  Delacorte Press
Source:  E-galley from publisher
My rating:  3.5 stars

Synopsis:
Music brought Autumn, Shay, and Logan together. Death wants to tear them apart.

Autumn always knew exactly who she was—a talented artist and a loyal friend. Shay was defined by two things: her bond with her twin sister, Sasha, and her love of music. And Logan always turned to writing love songs when his love life was a little less than perfect.

But when tragedy strikes each of them, somehow music is no longer enough. Now Logan can’t stop watching vlogs of his dead ex-boyfriend. Shay is a music blogger struggling to keep it together. And Autumn sends messages that she knows can never be answered.

Each of them wonders: How different would my life be if this hadn’t happened? And now that it has . . . what’s next?

My Review:
Overall, this was a wonderfully written book.  The characters were very deep, the tragedies very emotion-wrenching, and the connections between the three intertwining stories were creative and perfect.  

First you had Autumn, who had lost her best friend Octavia.  She felt guilt over Tavia's death because she had not been with her that night, she had been with Tavia's brother Dante instead of at the party where Tavia had left to go try to make up with her ex-boyfriend Perry.  Every chapter begins with Autumn writing a message to Tavia on one of her social media sites, followed by an actual email to her.  

Then there was Logan.  Logan's ex-boyfriend committed suicide.  Logan's guilt comes from the fact that when he broke up with Bram, he said horrible things to him about hoping he died alone.  You feel for Logan.  I mean he didn't even know he was gay for sure until Bram kissed him.  And then when Bram basically broke up with Logan for a girl, it was a huge blow for Logan.  Every one of Logan's chapters begins with a post from Bram about how he was so bored he was going to do something, and so it is Logan watching Bram's videos.

Finally there was Shay, who lost her twin sister Sasha to cancer.  The beginning of each of Shay's chapters is a band review by Sasha on their BaMF site.  Shay is having panic attacks, really bad ones whenever something makes her think about Sasha.  A song, a memory, just about anything.  She doesn't feel guilty necessarily, but it is hard for her to think about how her mom and Sasha's boyfriend now see Sasha whenever they look at her, and that must be hard for her.  Plus learning that she is what is now called "twinless".  

All three have a connection to the band Unraveling Lovely, a band that is currently split up.  It is this connection that they may be able to use to save each other, save themselves really, help to pull themselves back to life after the death of someone that they each loved more than they can ever say.

I loved all the connections.  I liked how little bits that related to each of the losses led to the connections having their issues and separations.  The saddest part for me had to do with Bram, and what all we found out had happened between the time he had broken up with Logan, and what it really was that led to his death. 

My only complaint is that I struggled a bit to get through it.  I had problems remembering who was who at first.  Keeping characters and side characters straight between each chapter.  That's probably what it was that kept me from being able to get sucked in and not put it down.  It was easy to stop reading when I had to put it aside.  But it was not easy to pick back up.  While it had some great messages, it just wasn't my top read so far.  I probably will not spend the money to purchase for my school library, but if someone was asking for a good book about suicide or grief for teens, it would be one I could suggest as a new choice.

 
 

Two Young Adult Tear-Jerker Mini-Reviews

These are two YA books that I read and cried even as I enjoyed them more than anything this January.  All of them got 5 stars from me.

Without Merit by Colleen Hoover:

Published:  October 3rd, 2017
Source:  Purchased paperback/listened to digitally downloaded audiobook from Library
My Rating:  5 stars

I purchased this book when I finally got the chance to meet Colleen Hoover, one of the authors on my must-meet list since I first read one of her books about two years ago.  It was a little later before I finally got around to reading this, because I really wanted to listen to the audiobook from the library, even though I owned a physical copy of the book.  The characters were all so unique and they just jumped right off the pages.  This was one really messed up family. But we start out not knowing exactly what all those issues are.  And then this guy named Luck shows up, and I loved him!  He made me laugh so much!  Although later in the book he does do something that made me very angry.  The book just got weirder and weirder as it went.  The craziness just piled on to this family. And then it took a turn I totally didn't see coming!  One that had me in tears and at about 35% in the audiobook, I gave up and just picked up the book to start reading.  I can read so much faster than it takes to listen to the audiobook.  Halfway through she had me sobbing so hard I could barely see through my tears to keep reading.  ANd I had to stay up and read, couldn't go to bed without getting past a certain point.

A couple things that I loved, there's a funny fact in the book about how you can't hum when you're holding your nose closed.  I want to know who actually read that part and didn't then actually try it.  I admit it, I tried!  Then there is a quote about not trusting an overconfident person, and I totally agree with that 100% from all my past experiences in life.  And because I just have to share it, here is my picture with Colleen Hoover!

Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:
Not every mistake deserves a consequence. Sometimes the only thing it deserves is forgiveness.

The Voss family is anything but normal. They live in a repurposed church, newly baptized Dollar Voss. The once cancer-stricken mother lives in the basement, the father is married to the mother’s former nurse, the little half-brother isn’t allowed to do or eat anything fun, and the eldest siblings are irritatingly perfect. Then, there’s Merit.

Merit Voss collects trophies she hasn’t earned and secrets her family forces her to keep. While browsing the local antiques shop for her next trophy, she finds Sagan. His wit and unapologetic idealism disarm and spark renewed life into her—until she discovers that he’s completely unavailable. Merit retreats deeper into herself, watching her family from the sidelines when she learns a secret that no trophy in the world can fix.

Fed up with the lies, Merit decides to shatter the happy family illusion that she’s never been a part of before leaving them behind for good. When her escape plan fails, Merit is forced to deal with the staggering consequences of telling the truth and losing the one boy she loves.

Miss Me Not by Tiffany King:

Published:  November 11th, 2012
Source:  Purchased ebook
My Rating:  5 stars 

This is one I downloaded because there is a page in my romance author coloring book.   Now, honestly, the picture in the coloring book doesn't quite match the way the story was.  I loved the story though. So many wonderful emotional scenes to this story.  While the other book I read by the author, The Write Stuff, was more New Adult, this was really YA.  I wish it was one I could purchase for my school library with school funds, but I would have to order it from Amazon with my own money and then wait to get my district to catalog it.  This book was so good that as I was reading it, I would tell myself just one chapter before bed, but before I knew it, I'd read way past the time I had meant to go to bed because of work the next day.  I loved Dean, and totally felt for Madison.  Really a great read.  It does deal with suicide and depression, so that is important for those who need trigger warnings I guess.  Oh yeah, here is my finished page from the coloring book.  You can see it looks kind of sweet and cheerful, and honestly this was a pretty dark story, lots of tears on my part!

Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:
Madison Hanson's past demons have given her a shadow of an existence with little hope. With the sudden tragic death of a fellow student, Madison questions her own life choices, and is now forced to evaluate everything she thought she believed in. 

When fate intervenes and partners her with Dean Jackson, a popular "all around good guy" from school, Madison gets a glimpse of a life that is filled with sunshine that has the power to break through the darkness she has cloaked herself in. 

With Dean's help, Madison discovers a desire to finally step out of the shadows, and embrace life and all its gifts. 

ARC Review: This is Not a Love Letter by Kim Purcell

Book info:

Title:  This is Not a Love Letter
Author:  Kim Purcell
Genre:  YA contemporary
Release Date:  January 30th, 2018
Publisher:  Disney Hyperion
Source: ARC received from Publisher
My rating:  5 stars

Synopsis:
One week. That's all Jessie said. A one-week break to get some perspective before graduation, before she and her boyfriend, Chris, would have to make all the big, scary decisions about their future--decisions they had been fighting about for weeks.

Then, Chris vanishes. The police think he's run away, but Jessie doesn't believe it. Chris is popular and good-looking, about to head off to college on a full-ride baseball scholarship. And he disappeared while going for a run along the river--the same place where some boys from the rival high school beat him up just three weeks ago. Chris is one of the only black kids in a depressed paper mill town, and Jessie is terrified of what might have happened.

As the police are spurred to reluctant action, Jessie speaks up about the harassment Chris kept quiet about and the danger he could be in. But there are people in Jessie's town who don't like the story she tells, who are infuriated by the idea that a boy like Chris would be a target of violence. They smear Chris’s character and Jessie begins receiving frightening threats.

Every Friday since they started dating, Chris has written Jessie a love letter. Now Jessie is writing Chris a letter of her own to tell him everything that’s happening while he’s gone. As Jessie searches for answers, she must face her fears, her guilt, and a past more complicated than she would like to admit.

My Review:
Okay, so, this book really had a little bit of everything in it.  And while it started off a bit slow, after a short bit, it got to the point where I couldn't put it down.  In fact the way the story was slow makes a lot of sense, because it is spent with the characters, waiting on any scrap of news or clue as to what happened to the  missing boy, Chris.  The author kept me guessing for most of the way through the book, something that I really enjoy when reading.  Every character in this book had their own cross to bear, their own sins - their own demons.  Just like in real life, there usually aren't going to be cut and dried "bad guys".  That doesn't mean that the people in this book that are the bad guys don't do terrible things.  They do, and while you may feel some sympathy for them after certain facts come to life, they still do things that make them the bad guys. Not only that, there is a character that you probably won't like.  I didn't.  Jessie didn't. But in the end, along with Jessie, you will realize that maybe that person isn't quite the horrible person they've been made out to be.  Maybe they do deserve a little leeway and understanding of their own situation. 

As I started out saying, this book touches on so many different topics, very heavy ones as well.  Depression, bullying, racism, family issues, and LGBT issues, just to name a few.  While reading, I kept imagining who could be responsible, what could possibly have happened to Chris.  And even though I knew that with the feel of the book, something bad had probably happened to him, I couldn't keep myself from imagining what ways he could possibly still be alive, and that in the end we could have an unexpected, highly unlikely, happy ending. When the news that I knew was coming no matter what actually was delivered in the story, tears began streaming down my face.  The way the characters were written, the emotions and reactions they had to the news just hit me so hard.  I knew it had to be going that way, the more clues and background information that we got.  But I kept hoping so hard, even after it was pretty much assured what was coming, that some way, some how, we could get Chris back without any heartache.  Because with all the flashbacks and memories of Chris, I kinda fell in love with him, and really wanted the chance to meet him in the present day of this story.

A great story, an author I look forward to reading more from in the future.  Definitely a book I want to add to my high school library collection, and one I will recommend when I work at my part-time job at the bookstore. 

Review: Madness by Zac Brewer

Book info:

Title:  Madness
Author:  Zac Brewer
Genre:  YA contemporary, suicide
Release Date:  September 19th, 2017
Publisher:  HarperTeen
Source:  ARC traded for on Twitter
My rating:  5 stars

Synopsis:
New York Times bestselling author Zac Brewer delivers his most honest and gripping novel yet, about a girl who believes she’s beyond saving—until she realizes the only person who can save her is herself.

Brooke Danvers is pretending to be fine. She’s gotten so good at pretending that they’re letting her leave inpatient therapy. Now she just has to fake it long enough for her parents and teachers to let their guard down. This time, when she's ready to end her life, there won’t be anyone around to stop her.

Then Brooke meets Derek. Derek is the only person who really gets what Brooke is going through, because he’s going through it too. As they start spending more time together, Brooke suddenly finds herself having something to look forward to every day and maybe even happiness.

But when Derek’s feelings for her intensify, Brooke is forced to accept that the same relationship that is bringing out the best in her might be bringing out the worst in Derek—and that Derek at his worst could be capable of real darkness.

My Review:
What can I say except for that once again, Brewer has blown me away.  This was a book that I could barely put down.  I picked it up, and blew straight through it. Well, except for last Friday.  I was having my own down day, just all kinds of things going wrong in my world, I'd ran out of my own medicine for my depression, and so I had to put the book down and take a break.  That's not to say that it is a depressing book, it's just that the feelings of the main character, Brooke, and her thoughts, just were hitting too close to home at that moment in time.  But once I got my meds taken on Saturday, and things started getting back to normal, I was able to pick it back up and get right back in.  And Brooke's life also started looking up at the same time.  That's not to say it was smooth sailing for her on the road to recovery, or that she was fully recovered by the end of the book, but you could see her healing and deciding that maybe she did want to live.  That maybe there was something or more than one thing that was worth living for.  

Having been a fan of the author for a long time, and knowing what all Brewer has gone through in his own life, it was obvious that this was going to be more realistic than many of the similar types of stories you see out there.  But it was realistic in a way that still can give those of us out there with these types of feelings hope, to see that there is hope out there, and that knowing others feel the same way as you, but that you can give it time and work and get past it.  

I'm so glad I found someone to trade me this book, I will be hoping that I can get to "meet" Zac Brewer and get it autographed at some point in the future. While I have met the author before, it was when he was in a different part of his life, and I'm looking forward to meeting him when he is hopefully doing better and feeling more like himself.  

Another great thing about this book and the author is the information he gives at both the beginning and the end of the story about how personal this story really is.  There is also a great best friend story and the romance is good, showing how it can be not so perfect, but can also hide what you think is perfect.

Definitely as I said a 5 star read and highly recommended. 

 

Review with Author Interview: In 27 Days by Alison Gervais

Book info:

Title:  In 27 Days
Author:  Alison Gervais
Genre: YA contemporary, magical realism
Release Date:  July 25th, 2017 (Originally on Wattpad May 28th, 2012)
Publisher:  Blink YA Books
Source: ARC from publisher and SIS-OY-EV Public Relations for honest review
My rating:  4 stars

Synopsis:

Hadley Jamison receives an unexpected shock when she hears her classmate, Archer Morales, committed suicide. She didn’t know the quiet, reserved guy very well, but Hadley can’t shake the feeling that there was something she could have done to help him. Little does she know, she will actually have the chance. At Archer’s funeral, Hadley is approached by a man named Death who offers her a deal—if she accepts, she will be sent back twenty-seven days in time to prevent Archer from committing suicide.

Twenty-seven days was the length of time it took for Archer to decide to kill himself, and twenty-seven days is all Hadley has to succeed in saving him. Unfortunately, Archer isn’t exactly on the same page. Despite his cold comebacks and aloof exterior, Hadley knows he needs her, and continues to pursue a friendship with him. Archer begins softening up, and Hadley believes that her mission to save him will be a success.

But just when Hadley is beginning to feel confident, a series of dangerous accidents occur. She and Archer are pushed apart, and she must decide whether she is ready to risk everything—including her own life—to keep Archer safe.

In 27 Days is available in hardcover for $16.99 at retailers nationwide and online on July 25, 2017. An e-book edition is also available.

My review:
First, the main character's name is the same as my 5 year old niece's name, so that was interesting to read, as you don't see a lot of people named Hadley.  But I do love the name.  The story is told from Hadley's point of view, so we don't necessarily get to know exactly what is going on in Archer's mind, or exactly what might make him want to kill himself, except through the experiences that Hadley creates as she tries to get to know him and make him not want to commit suicide.  What I like about the story is that it doesn't all just go easy as they start hanging out and become friends and all is good.  No, Archer has reasons for not trusting other people.  Reasons for not letting Hadley just walk right in and get to know him.  But he has a great family, and they are very accepting of Hadley, and welcome her into their fold.  It turns out that Hadley may come from a wealthier family than Archer, but having money takes from the time she gets with her parents.  And it's not that they don't love her, I'm glad that even though she has absent parents, it is worked in to show that they do really love her, and that they can learn from things going on in their life and try to make things better.  I like all the twists the story took whenever we learned something new about either Archer, or Hadley, or even just what the deal with Death actually will entail and make Hadley have to deal with.  

I only had two issues with the story.  One was how the two of them really didn't seem to know each other that much before all of this started.    But maybe that works better for the way the story is told.  The other issue I had maybe deals more with while the story is about a suicide being prevented, there isn't that much about the suicide itself.  Again, the way the story is told, that is probably for the best as well.  But don't go into the story expecting something like that.  For the most part you are getting the month before he will do it, just the repeat of it through Hadley's eyes.  Definitely a good read though.  One I can definitely see adding to my school library.

Author interview:

1. What does your writing process look like? Do you know the whole story when you start?  Or do you just start writing and go with it (seat of the pants writing)?  If you plan it out, how do you do that?  Outline, notecards, post-it-notes, etc.?

I don’t really know the complete story when I start writing – I just write. I think that’s why it takes me so long, honestly. I work in bits and pieces as new things for the story fall into my head. Sometimes I can get on this big writing streak and complete maybe seven chapters in two days, and other times I can go two weeks and only write two sentences.

2. How do you come up with your ideas for your stories?

This is going to sound so silly, but I have absolutely NO idea where the idea for IN 27 DAYS came from. I was just sitting on a plane, on my way home from a youth conference in Indianapolis, and all of a sudden I asked the person sitting next to me if I could have a pen and a piece of paper because I knew I just had to start writing something. That something turned out to be IN 27 DAYS. When I was writing the story, there were bits and pieces of certain scenes that were rather emotional for me. I’ve struggled with depression for years, and I think it always will be an ongoing battle for me. It was difficult not to feel for these characters as their story unfolded because I’d been in some similar situations before.

3. How long have you been writing?

I started writing around the age of five, but it wasn’t until I was about ten or so that I began to consider becoming an author

4. What tips do you have for aspiring writers?

My one piece of advice is ALWAYS keep writing! Never stop! Remember to write for yourself because you have a story to tell, and don’t worry about what people are going to think. Carry a notebook with you in case inspiration suddenly comes to you – like it did for me! – and then you can get down to writing as soon as possible!

5. Some favorites:
   1. Books/authors/genres: Definitely YA Fiction, of any genre! All-time favorite would of course have to be the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling.
   2. Movies/TV Shows: My favorite movie is actually a musical called Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Favorite TV show would have to be Supernatural, and shows from old school Disney Channel and Nickelodeon.
   3. Music: I am honestly a huge fan of big band music. I’ve always loved Glenn Miller and his Orchestra. I have about five different records of his.

  About the Author:

Alison Gervais joined the website for aspiring writers, Wattpad, her sophomore year of high school, and In 27 Days followed a few months later. In 27 Days has gone on to win a Watty Award, become the #1 title in the Adventure category, and secure nearly 20 million reads. Alison now attends the University of Colorado Pueblo pursuing a creative writing degree. If she's not writing or studying for classes, she can be found re-reading Harry Potter, watching Supernatural, or trying to win the affection of her two cats, Kovu and Rocket.  

Blink publishes authentic and immersive content that engages and inspires young adult readers, from cutting-edge plotlines to fantasy to romance to contemporary classics. For more information please visit BlinkYABooks.com.







 

Review: Teach Me to Forget by Erica M. Chapman

Book info:
Title:  Teach Me to Forget
Author:  Erica M. Chapman
Genre:  YA contemporary
Published:  December 2nd, 2016
Source:  Finished copy from publisher, Merit Press, in exchange for honest review
My rating:  5 stars

I didn't get to this before it was published, and I'm sorry about that now, because this book was so good.  I am going to be telling everyone about it.  If you read and appreciated Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, this is a book that to me is just as good.  It's about a girl who is going to commit suicide.  It's done from a different aspect than Asher's book.  This is told as the girl is going through her actual plan.  

The main character is Ellery.  Her sister died in a car accident where Ellery had been driving, and so Ellery has felt responsible ever since.  Her father left her and her mother shortly afterwards.  And now, Ellery has a plan to kill herself.  She isn't going to use pills, like most women do, because of the research that says that is also usually so there is a chance to be found.  No, she's going to use a gun.  But when she goes to do it, the gun doesn't work.  She didn't buy the gun herself, she had to have someone over 18 buy it for her.  But she has the receipt and goes to take it back, accidentally showing up at K-Mart instead of Walmart.  The person there just sees someone with a gun, and calls security.  Turns out K-Mart doesn't sell guns, and the security guard is a guy from Ellery's school.  A guy who seems to want to help her.  

Colter is the guy, and now he keeps showing up at school and trying to talk to her and be friends with her. But Ellery is sarcastic and snippy with him, and tells him he can't change her mind.  She has a plan.  She also finds out that a boy she was friends with when she was younger feels the same way she does, has even got scars on his arms, like she has on her arms from her past attempt.  She tries to talk to her old friend, trying to convince him he shouldn't do it, all the while so set to kill herself.  But Colter starts to wear down Ellery's defenses.  She starts to have feelings for Colter, friendly, maybe more.  And she promises to give him until Halloween to change her mind. Even though she promises this to him, in her mind, she isn't planning to change her mind. She's set the new date as Halloween.  

This book is so good.  The way Ellery feels is described very well.  Her being so set on the whole idea was heartbreaking, but you could kind of see her reasoning, or at least why it made sense to her.  I have had my own issues with depression, so many parts in this resonated with me.  While I totally understood her reasoning and thoughts, I think getting to know Colter and the things he did for her really helped me to see the other side of the issue.  While I haven't had those types of thoughts in a while, it was definitely a good thing.

I guess for those of you who need the "trigger" warnings, this is about suicide and a suicidal girl, and a boy - her friend.  I honestly think this book is as good as Thirteen Reasons Why and should be recommended right along with it.

 

Blog Tour and Review: Dead Girls Society by Michelle Krys

Book info:
Title:  Dead Girls Society
Author:  Michelle Krys
Genre:  YA suspense/mystery
Published:  November 8th, 2016
Source:  ARC from Publisher
My rating:  5 stars

I got an email from the publisher asking if I'd like to participate in a tour for this book and another.  The other one is a middle grades book, so isn't my normal read, but they did send me an ARC of it as well. This book sounded really good, and actually I was definitely pleased at just how good it turned out to be!

The main character is a girl named Hope.  Hope has cystic fibrosis, which means she spends a lot of her time out of school because of how easily something can keep her from being able to breathe, how easily she can get sick.  When the story starts, she has gotten a text from some number that she doesn't know, and it is an invitation to participate in some kind of secret group.  It will require her to sneak out of her house late at night, but after being stuck at home, and her best friend Ethan seems to be moving on with a girl at school, she decides it is worth it.  

When she gets to the meeting place, she sees 4 other girls, ones that she doesn't think she has anything in common with.  There are instructions there for each of them, they must participate in dares.  Whoever makes it till the very end will win a lot of money.  If they fail a dare, they will be cut out of the competition.  If they cheat, tell anyone about the activities, or even just quit, they are threatened with punishment.  Each of the girls, other than Hope, seem to have something in their past that the person who is running this whole thing knows and is holding over them as blackmail.

The dares are dangerous as you'd expect.  A couple girls get really hurt, and there are several times that Hope almost doesn't make it.  In fact the person behind it all decides that she's cheated, and her punishment is something that affects her whole family.  

Not only is she dealing with this society, but she's also worried about losing her friend Ethan to this other girl at school.  But then a really popular, cute guy picks her for a project partner when she goes back to school, and he seems to really like her, and be interested in her.  But Ethan tells Hope that he doesn't trust this guy.  

In the end it will boil down to who is really behind the dares, which of the girls in the group are up front about what they are hiding.  Hope will have to find out if her friendship with Ethan can survive her wanting more, even if he seems to not see her that way.  She also needs the money to help her family, and is unsure if this new guy is really what he seems to be.  

The book was a really good, quick read.  I didn't make too many notes as I updated on Goodreads. Probably because it was so good I didn't want to stop to take the time to do that.  I enjoyed the New Orleans setting since I was just down there the first weekend of October, and what was kind of funny was that I actually was reading another book at the same time that took place in the city.  Anyway, I highly recommend this, and I will definitely be purchasing it for the school library where I work.  I liked the characters a lot, you had the main character with a debilitating disease, you had gay characters, there was a suicide that was a big part of the story, and other many other types of characters.  Below is the schedule for the blog tour if you'd like to check out some other posts on the book!