Guest Post and Review: Perpetual by Michaela Debelius

Today I have author Michaela Debelius here to share a little bit about her book Perpetual and a special guest post by her about the age old (okay not that old) debate of hardbacks, paperbacks or e-books?

But first a little bit about her novel.

Title: Perpetual
Author: Michaela Debelius
Published: January 7, 2013
Series: Book One in the Revoker Series
Source: Copy Provided by the Author (in exchange for an honest review)

Synopsis:

“Some people say they don’t care. I actually mean it.”

Mercy Green didn’t become this way overnight. Centuries of monotonous life have left her jaded and detached. Humans weren’t meant to live forever. But then again, she isn’t human. Adam is though, and his purity baffles her. How can he remain unpolluted in a world tarnished by corruption? It doesn’t matter. Her time in Birchwood Creek is coming to an end and she must prepare to relocate. That is, until she inexplicably wakes up in a pool of her own blood. The answer seems simple enough: leave immediately. But when an attempt is made on Adam’s life, a failed murder she inadvertently caused, she feels obligated to stay and protect him. 

But then she’s attacked again. 

And Adam begins to ask questions.

Victim to an unseen stalker, Mercy’s forced to seek help from Nick, an immortal teenager whose sudden appearance suspiciously coincides with her plunge into chaos. With her structured life unraveling and revelation of her immortality looming, Mercy must accept the truth: she’s being hunted. But why?

…And she thought immortality was boring.

*Amazon*

About the Author:

Author Bio: Michaela Debelius is a fiction writer whose work incorporates elements of science fiction, romance, and suspense. Originally from New England, she now lives in Arizona with her husband and two furry children. Her second novel, Perpetual¸ is available now. Please visit www.MichaelaDebelius.com for more information.

Guest Post:

E-readers, Paperbacks, and Tinfoil Hats

(AKA You Can Pry This Paperback Out of My Cold Dead Hands)

Fun fact: The majority of my sales are e-books. I’m not talking an 80/20 split. I’m talking 99/1, and I’m certain my paperback sales are all family members who think it’s neat to see my name in print (appreciate the support immensely, fam!). It’s not a startling discovery. We live in a technologically-driven world where most people own e-readers. I love e-readers. I love my own e-reader. I love that I can sell books because people own e-readers. E-readers are the reason we have a huge wave of indie authors. Without them, we’d be back to the days of allowing publishers to decide what will and will not make it to you, the reader. The power is in the readers’ hands. It’s all so wonderful and exciting and exhilarating.

Until the power goes out.

I grew up in New England. In case you didn’t know this, and if you live in America you really should, New England is old. I’m pretty sure Thomas Edison himself installed the light bulbs in my childhood home. Older wiring and above-ground electricity poles meant we’d lose power at least once a year, sometimes more depending on the frequency of storms. Usually it was only a few minutes, occasionally it was the better part of a day. Always the exception and never the rule, I was probably the only person I knew who looked forward to a day without electricity. Admittedly, that strange desire is gone now that I live in the desert and require air conditioning seven months out of the year. Sure, I can sprawl across a tile floor in the buff and pray for salvation, but my animals cannot.

I digress.

My point is, as a child during those times of no TV, and in my teen years no computers, there were only two options for entertainment: play a board game by candlelight or read a book.

Man, do I love an excuse to spend hours reading a book.

But it’s kind of hard to read a Kindle once the battery dies. You know what never needs a solid three hours of charging? My hardcopy of Catcher in the Rye. So while I love my Nook, while I adore the ability to download books without ever leaving the house, I’m aware there will always be a need for paper. It will dwindle, of course. Brick and mortar bookstores may become antiquated, probably sooner rather than later. But books themselves will always exist. People who think books will disappear are as mislead as those who thought the internet would kill newspapers. Yet every day I still find myself stepping over plastic-covered rolls of newsfeed as I walk my dog through the neighborhood. The reminder that some forms of media will never die is even more prominent on Sundays, when the papers are thicker and the quantity of recipients is

higher. You have to watch out for those extreme-couponing homes. Their driveways are a death trap.

So dare I say it, I love my e-reader but I will never fully turn my back on books. “Fun reads” will always be purchased in e-format. But certain books, books that have changed me, novels I’ve read over and over and can still get lost in the words, those are purchased in tangible form. Therefore, there will always be a need for bookcases in my house as well as power cords and USB ports.

And air conditioning…

My Thoughts and Review:

I wasn't sure what to expect after reading only the first few chapters of this book. I knew that I had found something completely original but I had my doubts I was going to fall in love with it or with the characters. While well written and full of detail, it moved a little slow and honestly, while the premise was something different it seemed to lack something I couldn't quite put my finger on. Excitement or adventure maybe? Or maybe just the fast pace of most YA novels these days, either way, I had a hard time connecting with anyone and even with the story line itself.

I didn't want to give it up on it because even if it wasn't completely engaging it still did have enough umph to it that I wanted to see where the story would go and I am glad that I did because as the pages flew by the story and the writing started to get better and before I knew it I was completely engaged in the storyline. 

The author really did create something extraordinary which, can be hard to do in this genre. It is hard to find something not only unique but fun and entertaining as well and while this may have had a slow start it did pick up and start to really flow. As more and more information about who and what Mercy was and the mysterious people out to get her kind evolved I became pretty engrossed in the story and I couldn't read it fast enough.

Mercy, Adam, Ben, Emily and Nick (I think I loved him most!) were all great characters. It was nice to see Mercy's character learn and grow. She may have been a couple of centuries old but when it came to loving and trusting others she had so much to learn and I loved watching her character grow as she learned to let people in and form deep bonds of friendship with them. 

I will definitely be picking up the second book in this truly stand out series.

*All Opinions are my own and I was in no way compensated for my review*