Review and Giveaway: Casualties by Elizabeth Marro

Title: Casualties
Author: Elizabeth Marro
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Berkley (February 2, 2016)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: Contemporary Woman's Fiction
My Rating: 4 Stars



Book Description:
A heartbreaking and insightful debut novel about the wars we fight overseas, at home, and within our own hearts.

Some come back whole. Some come back broken. Some just never come back...

As an executive for one of the most successful military defense contractors in the country, Ruth Nolan should have been thrilled when her troubled son, Robbie, chose to join the marines. But she wasn’t. She was terrified.

So, when he returns home to San Diego after his second tour in Iraq, apparently unscathed, it feels like a chance to start over and make things right—until a scandal at work tears her away from their reunion. By the next morning, Robbie is gone. A note arrives for Ruth in the mail a few days later saying, “I’m sorry for everything. It’s not your fault. I love you.”

Without a backward glance, Ruth packs up Robbie’s ashes and drives east, heading away from her guilt and regret. But the closer she gets to the coast she was born on, the more evident it becomes that she won’t outrun her demons—eventually, she’ll have to face them and confront the painful truth about her past, her choices, the war, and her son. 

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Even though I had my suspicions that this novel might very well tear my heart out I couldn't resist picking it up anyways. I have a soft spot for anything having to do with our troops and anything having to do with redemption and hopefully a happily ever after in the end.

I'm not going to lie, this book was emotional in every sense of the word. In fact, at times it was downright hard to read but in the very best ways.

It really is so much more than the heartache of the beginning, it is about redemption, righting wrongs, and most of all, it is about the healing power of love.

Well written, paced, and a page turner at its core, this was worth the heartache and I'm glad that I took a chance with it and tried it. 

*All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*

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Blog Tour Book Review, Excerpt, and Giveaway: Sanctuary Bay by Laura J. Burns & Melinda Metz

Welcome to my stop for the Sanctuary Bay Blog Tour!

This was such a fun and different kind of read. I hope you will all take a minute or two to check out my review for it, read the excerpt and of course, enter the giveaway.

Release Date: January 19, 2016 

St. Martin's Press

Genre: YA Fantasy

Series: Book One

Book Description:

In this genre-bending YA thriller, will Sarah Merson's shiny new prep school change her life forever or bring it to a dark and sinister end?

When Sarah Merson receives the opportunity of a lifetime to attend the most elite prep school in the country-Sanctuary Bay Academy-it seems almost too good to be true. But, after years of bouncing from foster home to foster home, escaping to its tranquil setting, nestled deep in Swans Island, couldn't sound more appealing. Swiftly thrown into a world of privilege and secrets, Sarah quickly realizes finding herself noticed by class charmer, Nate, as well as her roommate's dangerously attentive boyfriend, Ethan, are the least of her worries. When her roommate suddenly goes missing, she finds herself in a race against time, not only to find her, but to save herself and discover the dark truth behind Sanctuary Bay's glossy reputation. 

In this genre-bending YA thriller, Sanctuary Bay by Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz, Sarah's new school may seem like an idyllic temple of learning, but as she unearths years of terrifying history and manipulation, she discovers this "school" is something much more sinister.

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About the Authors:

Laura J. Burns has written more than thirty books for kids and teens, touching on topics from imaginary lake monsters to out-of-control Hollywood starlets. (Those two things have more in common than you'd think.)

With Melinda Metz, she has also written for the TV shows ROSWELL, 1-800-MISSING, and THE DEAD ZONE. Their next book is SANCTUARY BAY, coming in January 2016!

Laura lives in New York with her husband, her kids, and her two exceptionally silly dogs.

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SANCTUARY BLOG TOUR EXCERPT:

Daddy  pressed his finger to his lips, shushing Sarah quiet as he slid the door to the tunnel back on. She wrapped her arms tightly around  her knees and pressed her cheek against her arm, trying to pretend she was back in her  own  room.  But it didn’t smell like her room. Even the spicy smell of Daddy’s cologne had faded now  that the tunnel was closed.  And  grayness was all around her. She was almost four, and that was too old to be scared of the dark. But it wasn’t all dark. It was just gray dark.
She tried not to think of monsters crawling toward her. Daddy said there were no monsters. But monsters  liked tunnels. They liked little girls.
Sometimes when she was scared she liked to sing the Maggie song. But that was against the rules. She had to be quiet. She had to be still. She had to wait until Daddy  or Mommy  opened the door and got her.
Thinking  about  the rules  helped.   She  could  almost hear Daddy  saying them, as if he was hiding in the tunnel with her. Even though he was way too big. If something bad happens, wait until the room is safe. If you leave the tunnel, put the funny slit- ted door back on. Run fast. Find a lady with kids. Tell her your name is Sarah Merson. Merson. Merson. Merson. Merson. Ask for help.
  Her nose started twitching, itching from the thick air. Mak- ing her want to sneeze. But she had to be quiet.
Then she heard Mommy screaming. Mommy never screamed. Were the monsters out there and not in the tunnel?
On  hands and knees she started creeping  toward the slits of light, heart pounding.
“Kt85L is our property,” a man said. “You had no right!”
Out there. Mommy  on her knees facing the hotel room wall. Someone’s legs. A hand  reaching  down.  A silver bird stared at Sarah from a ring on the finger. Stared with a horrible  little black eye. The finger pulled  the trigger of a gun.
A bang. Her ears filling with bees. Mommy  collapsing on the floor. Red spilling out.
Sarah shoved her fingers into her mouth. Quiet. The rule was be quiet.
Shouting. Daddy’s legs running by, out of the room. The bird man chasing. The door banging closed.
Something bad happening.
The  room  was safe. The  bird  man  was gone. So she had  to get out. Mommy  was on the floor. Daddy  was gone.
She shoved the door and it fell out onto the floor. Near Mommy. Near  the red. But the rule was to put  the funny  door back on. She picked  it up and shoved  it over the tunnel like Daddy  had shown her.
Sarah  didn’t  want to look at Mommy.  She looked  out the window  instead. The window  was always open  and there was never a screen. Daddy’s voice came from the hallway, yelling. Screaming.
Another bang.
Sarah pressing her hands over her eyes. Not looking. Not look- ing. Something bad happening.
Daddy  was quiet now. Something bad. She had to run fast.
Sarah climbed  on the chair under  the window.  The chair al- ways went under  the window.  She stuck her legs through the window  and jumped down.  Now run fast.
She ran fast, looking for a lady with a stroller or a kid her age. A mommy  would  help  her.  She would  say she was Sarah Merson.

Sarah Merson, and something bad happened.

This book was like an old couch that is well worn and used. One that you have to sit in for awhile, wiggle down and find that just perfect position before you truly can relax and feel at home in it. 

In other words, it took me awhile to warm up to Sarah and the story it's self, but once I did, I was hooked and in for the long hall. 

This story is a hard one to describe. It has some familiar tropes but some new and interesting ones as well, all  combined to create a unique story that will leave you anxious to know the outcome and eager to turn the pages.

It took me no time at all to start guessing and jumping to conclusions, only to have those thoughts and guesses stomped on and my having to start over again. This book was so strange in its uniqueness and so much fun to guess and speculate at. Before I knew it I had gobbled it all up and was sad that it was over. I can't find any info about this being a series but I'm really hoping it is because I think it would be so much fun to go back and explore everything once again and to learn more.

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WoW Pick of the Week!

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It is a chance to share those new releases were are super anxious to get our hands on and read.

I loved both Mead's Vampire Academy series and her Georgina Kincaid series so it's no wonder I want to try this as well, plus, okay, I love that description.  
Keeping my fingers crossed this is another winner.

Book Description:

A dazzling new fantasy series set in a mix of Elizabethan and frontier worlds that’s dripping with romance from Richelle Mead, #1 internationally bestselling author of Vampire Academy.

Big and sweeping, spanning the refined palaces of Osfrid to the gold dust and untamed forests of Adoria, The Glittering Court tells the story of Adelaide, an Osfridian countess who poses as her servant to escape an arranged marriage and start a new life in Adoria, the New World. But to do that, she must join the Glittering Court. 

Both a school and a business venture, the Glittering Court is designed to transform impoverished girls into upper-class ladies capable of arranging powerful and wealthy marriages in the New World. Adelaide naturally excels in her training and even makes a few friends: the fiery former laundress Tamsin and the beautiful Sirminican refugee Mira. She manages to keep her true identity hidden from all but one: the intriguing Cedric Thorn, son of the wealthy proprietor of the Glittering Court.

When Adelaide discovers that Cedric is hiding a dangerous secret of his own, together, they hatch a scheme to make the best of Adelaide’s deception. Complications soon arise—first, as they cross the treacherous seas from Osfrid to Adoria, and later, when Adelaide catches the attention of a powerful governor.


But no complication will prove quite as daunting as the potent attraction simmering between Adelaide and Cedric. An attraction that, if acted on, would scandalize the Glittering Court and make them both outcasts in wild, vastly uncharted lands. . . .

Review: Playing With Fire by Sherry D. Ficklin

Title: Playing With Fire
Author: Sherry D. Ficklin
Series: Book One in the #Hacker Series
Published By: Clean Teen Publishing (October 27, 2015)
Source: Purchased (Free on Amazon right now!)
Genre: YA Mystery
My Rating: 4 Stars


Book Description:
One brilliant young hacker.
One experimental government aircraft.
One chance to keep it all from going up in flames.

Still recovering from her troubled past, Farris is no stranger to change. But when the military transfers her father across the country to an experimental aircraft squadron, settling in to a new life is the least of her problems. As a series of apparent computer glitches threaten the security of the fleet and the blame falls on her father, she decides to put her computer skills to use digging up the truth. Soon she’s drawn into the perilous world of a hacker who is determined to ground the fleet—at any cost.

When all signs lead to someone close to her as the mastermind, Farris will have to burn more than bridges to get to the truth. She will have to risk her fragile new life to uncover the identity of the cyber criminal before they can escalate from harmless tampering… to all out murder. 

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I started this wanting something full of mystery, fun, and just plain and simple, something different. I got all those things with this read and I'm happy to report, enjoyed this so much more than I was expecting too.

This really was well written and held so true to what I feel someone like Farris should be with the way she grew up and the challenges and struggles that she has had in her life. Not only that but can I just say, yay for a parent being very prominent in the YA genre for a change? It was so nice to see Farris and her dad not only having real conversations, but that he played such a huge role in her life, even after the death of her mother where in some many YA reads, the parent shuts down. 

It was so darn refreshing and may have been my most favorite aspect of this whole read, besides the fun characters, fast paced plot and the mystery that kept me turning the pages, not to mention the swoon worthy love interest, this was everything I was hoping it would be in a fun weekend stay at home getaway.

Review: Murder of Crows by Anne Bishop

Title: Murder of Crows
Author: Anne Bishop
Series: Book Two in the Others Series
Published By: Penguin (March 4, 2014)
Source: Purchased
Genre: Adult Dystopian/Fantasy
My Rating: 5 Stars!


Book Description:
After winning the trust of the terra indigene residing in the Lakeside Courtyard, Meg Corbyn has had trouble figuring out what it means to live among them. As a human, Meg should be barely tolerated prey, but her abilities as a cassandra sangue make her something more.

The appearance of two addictive drugs has sparked violence between the humans and the Others, resulting in the murders of both species in nearby cities. So when Meg has a dream about blood and black feathers in the snow, Simon Wolfgard—Lakeside's shape-shifting leader—wonders whether their blood prophet dreamed of a past attack or of a future threat.

As the urge to speak prophecies strikes Meg more frequently, trouble finds its way inside the Courtyard. Now the Others and the handful of humans residing there must work together to stop the man bent on reclaiming their blood prophet—and stop the danger that threatens to destroy them all. 

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I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series and the different take on The Others and all the supernatural creatures we have often heard about and loved.

Bishop's take on where these beings came from and their role in the world she created was imaginative and quite frankly, ingenious. 

It didn't take me long to fall in love with the whole lot of them and want more. So it was without hesitation that I dived right into A Murder of Crows and it reminded me all over again, why this series truly is something special. 

Yes this series is long and sometimes a bit slow going but oh boy, once it gets going it is so addictive and you can't help but be caught up in it all and crave more by the time you are done. I can truly see this series becoming a fast favorite.

Review: Take the Fall by Emily Hainsworth

Title: Take the Fall
Author: Emily Hainsworth
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Balzer & Bray (February 16, 2016)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: YA Mystery
My Rating: 3 Stars


Book Description:
WHO KILLED GRETCHEN MEYER?

Fear grips the residents of Hidden Falls the night Sonia Feldman and her best friend, Gretchen Meyer, are attacked in the woods. Sonia was lucky to escape with her life, but Gretchen’s body is discovered at the bottom of a waterfall. Beautiful, popular, and seemingly untouchable, Gretchen can’t be gone. Even as Sonia struggles with guilt and confusion over having survived, the whole town is looking to her for information…could she have seen something that will lead the police to the killer?

At the top of the list of suspects is Gretchen’s ex-boyfriend—and Sonia’s longtime enemy—Marcus Perez. So when Marcus comes to Sonia for help clearing his name, she agrees, hoping to find evidence the police need to prove he’s the killer. But as Gretchen’s many secrets emerge and the suspects add up, Sonia feels less sure of Marcus’s involvement, and more afraid for herself. Could Marcus, the artist, the screwup, the boy she might be falling for have attacked her? Killed her best friend? And if it wasn’t him in the woods that night…who could it have been?

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Who doesn't love a good heart pounding, pulse racing thriller? 

We are immediately thrown right into the very heart of the story as the novel opens with Sonia frantically fleeing the woods for her life after being attacked and nearly killed.

Right off you know this will be a mystery that is gong to mess with your head and while I did have most of it figured out way early on in the story, the author managed to put twists and new turns into the story that more than once, had me questioning whether or not I really did have it all right and whether or not I really did know who attacked Sonia and killed Gretchen.

But even though I ended up being right in the end, this story still managed to hold my attention and keep me interested with the suspense, the mystery of why, and of course the slight love interest that was completely forbidden for so many reasons.

All in all this was an engaging read that kept me turning the pages right up until the end.

*All thought and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*

Review: Bluescreen by Dan Wells

Title: Bluescreen
Author: Dan Wells
Series: Book One in the Mirador Series
Published By: Balzer & Bray (February 16, 2015)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: YA Dystopian/Fantasy
My Rating: 4 Stars!


Book Description:
Los Angeles in 2050 is a city of open doors, as long as you have the right connections. That connection is a djinni—a smart device implanted right in a person’s head. In a world where virtually everyone is online twenty-four hours a day, this connection is like oxygen—and a world like that presents plenty of opportunities for someone who knows how to manipulate it.

Marisa Carneseca is one of those people. She might spend her days in Mirador, the small, vibrant LA neighborhood where her family owns a restaurant, but she lives on the net—going to school, playing games, hanging out, or doing things of more questionable legality with her friends Sahara and Anja. And it’s Anja who first gets her hands on Bluescreen—a virtual drug that plugs right into a person’s djinni and delivers a massive, non-chemical, completely safe high. But in this city, when something sounds too good to be true, it usually is, and Mari and her friends soon find themselves in the middle of a conspiracy that is much bigger than they ever suspected.

Dan Wells, author of the New York Times bestselling Partials Sequence, returns with a stunning new vision of the near future—a breathless cyber-thriller where privacy is the world’s most rare resource and nothing, not even the thoughts in our heads, is safe.

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Set in a very futuristic Los  Angeles that is all too realistic and believable, this novel is nonstop cyber action that will leave you breathless and in need of more.

In a world run by robots and the cyber world filled with holograms, advanced AI intelligence, and  digital chips and enhancers, this newest series from author Dan Wells is sure to please gamers and lovers of fantasy alike. With a world that is more than likely to be in our not too distant future this series was fast paced, action driven and so much fun to read.

*All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*

WoW Pick of the Week

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It is a chance to share those new releases were are super anxious to get our hands on and read.

Believe it or not, I choose this weeks pick because of the author, cover or synopsis be danged, although, thankfully, I like them both too. ;)  She better not let me down though!

Book Description:

Tell the Wind & Fire is about a young girl called Lucie who lives in a New York very different from the New York we know: the city is torn between two very different kinds of magic, and Lucie’s own family was torn apart years ago by that conflict. Lucie wears magic rings and carries a burden of guilt she can’t share with anyone.

The light in her life is her sweetheart boyfriend Ethan, but it turns out Ethan has a secret too: a soulless doppelganger created by dark magic, who has to conceal the face identical to Ethan’s with a hood fastened by a collar nobody but a Light magician with magical rings can take off… and who introduces himself to both of them by, for reasons nobody can understand, saving Ethan’s life… 

Review: After the Woods by Kim Savage

Title: After the Woods
Author: Kim Savage
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux (February 23, 2016)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: YA Mystery/Thriller
My Rating: 3.5 Stars!


Book Description:
Would you risk your life to save your best friend? 

Julia did. When a paroled predator attacked Liv in the woods, Julia fought back and got caught. Liv ran, leaving Julia in the woods for a terrifying 48 hours that she remembers only in flashbacks. One year later, Liv seems bent on self-destruction, starving herself, doing drugs, and hooking up with a violent new boyfriend. A dead girl turns up in those same woods, and Julia’s memories resurface alongside clues unearthed by an ambitious reporter that link the girl to Julia’s abductor. As the devastating truth becomes clear, Julia realizes that after the woods was just the beginning.

*Amazon*B&N*

This must be the year for thrillers and mystery in the young adult genre and I couldn't  be happier for it.

Savage's foray into the genre was a hit with her fast paced thriller that will keep you on edge and turning the pages.

Julia has just about everything a good heroine in these type of reads should have. Strong, fierce, loyal, and one heck of a witty sarcastic attitude that is hard not to love, oh yeah, she's also a fighter. Not in the kick butt sense but in the do whatever she has to to protect those she loves sense and it made her so endearing and her character believable to the core.

With a best friend that, when the story starts eleven months after Julia's abduction, makes you wonder, is deserving of the loyalty Julia showed her. With PTSD and a snarky attitude to cover it, Julia sets off to find answers and set things right.

With an ending you might not see coming this is a fast paced novel, with an atmosphere constantly shrouded in deception and lies, this story is one that will keep you on your toes until the startling dramatic conclusion.

*All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*

Review: Assassin's Heart by Sarah Ahiers

Title: Assassin's Heart
Author: Sarah Ahiers
Series: Stand Alone
Published By: Harper Teen (February 2, 2016)
Source: ARC Copy Provided by the Publisher (in exchange for an honest review)
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: 4 Stars!


Book Description:
In the kingdom of Lovero, nine rival Families of assassins lawfully kill people for a price. As a highly skilled member of one of these powerful clans, seventeen-year-old Lea Saldana has always trusted in the strength of her Family. Until she awakens to find them murdered and her home in flames. The Da Vias, the Saldanas’ biggest enemy, must be responsible—and Lea should have seen it coming. But her secret relationship with the Da Vias’ son, Val, has clouded her otherwise killer instinct—and given the Da Vias more reason than ever to take her Family down.

Racked with guilt and shattered over Val’s probable betrayal, Lea sets out to even the score, with her heart set on retaliation and only one thought clear in her mind: make the Da Vias pay.

With shades of The Godfather and Romeo and Juliet, this richly imagined fantasy from debut author Sarah Ahiers is a story of love, lies, and the ultimate vengeance.

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I'm a sucker for a good star crossed lovers romance. Add in a family filled with deadly assassins all fighting to be top dog and you have one read that I just couldn't resist. 

And while this wasn't quite the star crossed Romeo and Juliet lover's story the synopsis promised, this was the assassin story that I was hoping it would be and I found myself caught up in it before I even knew it.

This was such a fun read. It wasn't anything too special or mind blowing but it was well written and just plain entertaining and sometimes, that it is all that matters. 

From the medieval Romeo and Juliet feel, to the adventure and action around every bend this novel was fast paced, quick, and flowed together nicely and best of all was a stand alone that left me feeling quite satisfied when it was all over. 

It truly was something spunky and fun in the genre and I'm so glad I took a chance and read it and am truly looking forward to whatever the author puts out next.

*All thoughts and opinions are my own and were not influenced by the author or publisher. I was not compensated for this review.*

Review: All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Title: All In
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Series: Book Three in the Naturals Series
Published By: Disney-Hyperion (November 3, 2015)
Source: Purchased
Genre: YA Mystery
My Rating: 4 Stars


Book Description:
Three casinos. Three bodies. Three days.

After a string of brutal murders in Las Vegas, Cassie Hobbes and the Naturals are called in to investigate. But even with the team's unique profiling talents, these murders seem baffling: unlike many serial killers, this one uses different methods every time. All of the victims were killed in public, yet the killer does not show up on any tape. And each victim has a string of numbers tattooed on their wrist. Hidden in the numbers is a code—and the closer the Naturals come to unraveling the mystery, the more perilous the case becomes.

Meanwhile, Cassie is dealing with an equally dangerous and much more painful mystery. For the first time in years, there's been a break in her mother's case. As personal issues and tensions between the team mount, Cassie and the Naturals will be faced with impossible odds—and impossible choices.

*Amazon*B&N*

I love Barnes's books simply for the fun, unique take on things that only she seems to be able to offer. Add in plots that are both well designed, executed, and original and you are always in for a treat.

The Naturals series had me hooked from the very first book and seems to be getting better as it goes. A fun series about young teenage profilers that it is hard to resist.

I love this rag tag group of people that not only over time have learned to be friends but a family too. 

Each with unique abilities, traits, personalities, and things to offer, this series really had become a favorite of mine. It is hard to resist all the characters and how they interact with one another and how dang smart and attention detailed they really are.

Add in the new twists to the plot that were reveled all set in the fast paced life of Las Vegas Nevada and I 'm salivating to get my hands on the next book.   I won't go into any more detail but I will say that if you are looking for something fun, mysterious and a lot like Criminal Minds for teens, this in the series for you.