The Lost and the Found Review & Giveaway ~ Blog Tour

Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: September 13th, 2016
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery, Thriller, Fiction
Page Count: 368

LOST. 
When six-year-old Laurel Logan was abducted, the only witness was her younger sister. Faith’s childhood was dominated by Laurel’s disappearance – from her parents’ broken marriage and the constant media attention to dealing with so-called friends who only ever wanted to talk about her sister.   FOUND.
Thirteen years later, a young woman is found in the garden of the Logans’ old house, disorientated and clutching the teddy bear Laurel was last seen with. Laurel is home at last, safe and sound. Faith always dreamed of getting her sister back, without ever truly believing it would happen. But a disturbing series of events leaves Faith increasingly isolated and paranoid, and before long she begins to wonder if everything that’s lost can be found again…

This is one of those books that has a funny way of making you feel nervous from the very beginning. Even though the events in the first few chapters seemed to be happy and touching for the better, the main character's unease sets the foreboding tone well. Clarke's writing style is very well done and descriptive which immerses you in the world and makes the effects of all her thrilling twists even bigger on the reader.

Faith was a character I very much enjoyed. Losing her sister has really dominated her whole life and molded her into the character she currently is. She honestly yearns to be normal, so it is ironic how her thoughts and ways of acting portray her like any other teen, and obviously her life gradually unravels. Somehow she makes it through and stays strong. The other characters were just as great and well developed. I was so eager to see how Laurel would cope with normal life and how she and her sister would get along. I couldn't even imagine being in that situation where Faith was meeting her long lost sister many years later. I very much appreciated how genuine all the characters felt.

If there is one thing Cat Clarke knows how to do, it is keeping you as a reader on your toes, and that is the most I will say about the book's plot. I went into the book blind and I believe the read will be just as enjoyable to those who go in blind as well. As I mentioned before, you will feel as if the events are about to take a turn throughout the beginning of the book, and when they do, it is completely gripping. Overall, I highly enjoyed this book and recommend it to those who love realistic thrillers that will definitely give them a bit of a ride.

My Rating:

Buy the Book:

 Amazon | B&N

About the Author:

Cat was born in Zambia and brought up in Edinburgh and Yorkshire, which has given her an accent that tends to confuse people.

Cat has written non-fiction books about exciting things like cowboys, sharks and pirates, and now writes YA novels. She lives in Edinburgh with a couple of cats, Jem and Scout, who spend their days plotting to spit up furballs at the most inconvenient times. She likes cheese A LOT, especially baked camembert.

Website | Twitter 

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow the Tour:

9/12: Such A Novel Idea - Review

9/13: The Story Sanctuary - Q&A

9/14: Avid Reader - Review

9/15: Who RU Blog - Novel Secrets

9/16: Novel Ink - Review

Week 2:

9/19: Here's the Happy Endings - Guest Post

9/20: Blue Books and Butterflies - Review

9/21: Take Me Away to a Great Read - Mood Board

9/22: Quest Reviews - Review

9/23: Curling Up With A Good Book - Top 10

Slammed by Colleen Hoover ~ Impeccable Reviews

Series: Slammed #1
Publication Date: September 18, 2012
Publisher: Atria Books
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 321

Layken's father died suddenly, leaving her to gather every ounce of strength to be a pillar for her family, in order to prevent their world from falling apart. Now her life is taking another unexpected turn...

Layken's mother gets a job which leads to an unwanted move across the country. However, a new home means new neighbours... and Layken's new neighbour is the very attractive Will Cooper.

Will has an intriguing passion for slam poetry, and a matching passion for life. The two feel an irresistible attraction but are rocked to the core when a shocking revelation brings their romance to a screeching halt. Layken and Will must find a way to fight the forces that threaten to tear them apart...or learn to live without each other.

 I started buying Colleen Hoover's books with the mindset that I was going to love them just by how many other people love her books and my own love for the contemporary romance genre. I haven't read any New Adult books before, but I had heard this book was a great transition into the new adult genre which I really want to read more of. I thought I was ready and set to easily enjoy this book as a quick and fun read, and gosh was I wrong! I didn't just enjoy this book, I freaking loved it! This was not just any contemporary romance novel but has a story that is so meaningful. This book taught me so many life lessons that just left me in awe. To me, it was so good that I honestly have such a hard time understanding the few very low ratings I have seen it given on Goodreads. What even???

In this novel, we have the two love interests Layken and Will and a few important side characters including the little brothers of Layken and Will, Layken's mom, and Layken's friends. At the beginning of the novel Layken had just experienced the death of her father and her family has had to move away from their home in Texas to Michigan. Therefore, she is not in the best place from the beginning of the novel. On her first day in the new house, she meets Will which as you might of guessed blossoms a complicated relationship. I loved the romance because it was just too cute and at some points aggravating (but in a good way)! I know some New Adult books have the tendency to be seen as a bit...raunchy, but honestly, this novel is tamer than some of the Young Adult books I have read.

I believe going into this book mostly blind also allowed me to really enjoy the plot. There are so many twists I did not even slightly see coming and they just came and slapped me in the face. The love interest Will is a very intelligent young man who loves poetry, specifically slammed poetry, so there is a lot of poetry in this novel that just made my heart melt. Colleen Hoover needs to just go ahead and write a whole novel in verse if she has not already. I felt like everything was so well paced. I always felt engaged and ready to see what would happen next. I laughed, cried, sobbed, got angry, was surprised, and so many other emotions! Even her side characters were just as amazing and there is one character in particular named Eddie, whose story brought me to tears.

I think my favorite part about this book is how meaningful it felt. The characters are so authentic in that they are flawed and have been dealt their own set of life struggles. Every single character in this novel was built so well and I felt like I truly knew them by the end of this book. There are so many things that happen to the main characters Will and Layken in this novel that really throw their lives in every direction. I felt their pain because most of their problems were things that are very unfortunate, but can happen to anyone. This novel deeply explores the struggles life throws at us and how we choose to handle them. We can let them knock us off our feet or we can keep fighting and moving forward. This might sound crazy, but after reading this novel I feel enlightened and inspired all at the same time. I don't even believe this explanation is giving this book the justice it needs, but PLEASE JUST READ IT! It will hit you straight in the heart. The epilogue is what did it for me. I am not even sure why but I literally sobbed my way through it, and for a good 5 minutes after. It wasn't even only tears of sadness, but also tears of joy, understanding, and appreciation. (I know, I know. I am a very emotional reader OK! Colleen Hoover will just do that to you.)

I am honestly just speechless with the fact that this is her first novel and not only is it this good, but it is supposed to get even better as I read her newer novels. I honestly don't know if my heart will be able to handle it all.

My Rating:

If you have Colleen Hoover recommendations please tell me them all! I tried so hard not to include spoilers in this review, but let me know if I should make an audio book talk post just discussing this book because I really could go on all day about it.

Also, please let me know if you have read Point of Retreat and if you think I should read it because I honestly feel satisfied with the ending as it is. As much as I want to linger in the Slammed world with these great characters, I am nervous to dive deeper into later on in the main characters' lives.

Author of The Summer Before Forever, Melissa Chambers Interview ~ Book Music Playlist & Giveaway

Today I have a wonderful author interview with the lovely Melissa Chambers. Thank you so much to Melissa for doing this interview your answers were perfect! Also, thank you to Entangled TEEN for giving me the opportunity to have this great content for my post. Melissa has an amazing upcoming novel called The Summer Before Forever. It is such a nice novel and I will be posting my review for it very soon!

Series: Before Forever #1
Publication Date: August 22, 2016
Publisher: Entangled TEEN
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance
Page Count: 340

Some boys break your heart. Others teach you how to heal it.
Chloe Stone’s life is a hot mess. Determined to stop being so freaking skittish, she packs up her quasi-famous best friend and heads to Florida. The goal? Complete the summer bucket list to end all bucket lists. The problem? Her hot soon-to-be stepbrother, Landon Jacobs. 
Landon’s mom will throttle him if he even looks at his future stepsister the wrong way. Problem is, Chloe is everything he didn’t know he wanted, and that’s...inconvenient. Watching her tear it up on a karaoke stage, stand up to his asshole friend, and rock her first string bikini destroys his sanity. 
But there’s more than their future family on the line. Landon is hiding something—something he knows will change how she feels about him—and she’s hiding something from him, too. And when the secrets come out, there’s a good chance neither will look at the other the same way again...

Meet the Author

Melissa Chambers writes contemporary novels for young, new, and actual adults. A Nashville native, she spends her days working in the music industry and her nights tapping away at her keyboard. While she’s slightly obsessed with alt rock, she leaves the guitar playing to her husband and kid. She never misses a chance to play a tennis match, listen to an audiobook, or eat a bowl of ice cream. (Rocky road, please!) The Summer Before Forever is her debut YA novel.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

Amazon Author Page

Thank you so much for having me today, Chioma! I loved answering your questions and talking about my favorite subjects - books, writing, and movies!

Music plays a huge part in The Summer Before Forever, largely because it plays such a big part in my own life. Landon doesn’t like listening to music. That may sound odd for a teenage boy, but he has had some bad experiences that he associates with music, and so his answer has always been to avoid it. He’s a sports guy, anyway, so he listens to sports talk radio. 

Chloe is flabbergasted by the idea of someone not LOVING music. It runs deep to the core of who she is, and she treasures it with all of her being. So when asked to make Landon a playlist, she’s all on board!

While this book has a very specific playlist that is introduced throughout the story, Chloe has more tunes up her sleeve than she knows what to do with. So here’s another one she put together just for Chioma’s readers. Hope you enjoy!

Book Music Playlist

The Moth & the Flame “Red Flag”

Foals “What Went Down”

Wild Nothing “Summer Holiday”

My Goodness “Shiver + Shake”

TV on the Radio “Could You”

Young the Giant “Something to Believe In”

Viola Beach “Swings and Waterslides”

Arctic Monkeys “I Wanna Be Yours”

DMA’s “In the Moment”

The Shelters “Rebel Heart”

Editors “Sugar”

Wolfmother “Best of a Bad Situation”

You can hear this list on Spotify: http://spoti.fi/2bQSXVV

Author Interview

1.)     What would you say is the most challenging part of writing a contemporary romance novel?

Most plotting classes include a villain and danger. We don’t have those things in straight up contemporary romance, so we have to find ways to keep it interesting. We all love the scenes where the characters are connecting and falling for each other, but we writers have to work hard to find that balance between sweet and precious and, “Okay, this is getting old.”

2.)     Which character was your favorite to write about and why?

You’re asking me to pick?! As much as I love Landon and Chloe, I probably would have to say Jenna. She’s such a mess, and she’s absolutely nothing like me, which makes her so much fun to write! I love slipping into her skin for her moments and getting inside her screwy head!

3.)     Describe the main character,  Chloe, in three words

Artistic. Cautious. Modest.

4.)     Describe the love interest, Landon, in three words

Hunky. Conscientious. Smart.

5.)     Any favorite summer songs you like to jam to in the car?

I’m totally obsessed with “Swings and Waterslides” by Viola Beach! http://bit.ly/1ThC2fH This song is best when played at a robust volume with the windows down (sunroof open if you have one!).

6.)     If you could only read books by one author for the rest of your life, what author would you choose?

You’re killing me here! Man, this is tough. I’m going to have to go with Sophie Kinsella. I adore that woman and her characters. I was walking through Target a while back listening to Can You Keep A Secret, laughing like a hyena by myself. I know people thought I was nuts.

7.)     What are some of your favorite movies of all time?

These questions are great! I love super quirky movies like 500 Days of Summer, The Way, Way Back, Death to Smoochy, and 200 Cigarettes (to be watched on New Year’s Eve). And anything quotable like Raising Arizona, Napoleon Dynamite, Office Space, The Big Lebowski, or the Vacation movies.

8.)     What do you like most about being a published author?

Oh, gosh, I guess just sharing the characters and stories I love!

9.)     Sitting down and writing a novel cannot always be easy, so what are your three biggest distractions while you are writing?

1. Hunger! If I’m hungry, my belly makes me go get a snack.
2. My dogs! They’re both just so cute and precious I have to give them both big hugs and smooches all the time. 
3. Big Brother. I gave it up for years but got sucked in this season. I spend an unhealthy amount of time wondering what’s going on in the Big Brother house.

10.)    What is the one thing you would hope your readers would get out of reading your book?

I want readers to know that they deserve love...the good kind. I want them to see it’s not okay to be treated poorly by anyone, and I want them to set their bar high!

11.)    Are there any current projects you are working on that you would like to share with us?

Book two in the Before Forever series! I can’t wait to share Jenna’s story with readers! You’ll finally see what goes on in that convoluted brain of hers! :)

Once again, thank you to Melissa for all your wonderful answers. I am so happy I could have you on my blog. Luckily for those of you viewing this post, there is a giveaway Melissa is hosting that you can join in on!

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bout of Books 17 is Almost Here!!!

If you are new, here is a description of what Bout of Books is...

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 22nd and runs through Sunday, August 28th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 17 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Unfortunately, Bout of Books goes on when I am in school, so I won't be reading a ridiculous number of books, but I still plan on getting at least 2 books finished. I am feeling pretty motivated so I'm going to put 5 books on this list. Will I actually get to all of them?...probably just as soon as pigs start flying.

My Bout of Books Reading List

Unfair by Steven Harper

November Rain by Shannon A. Thompson

The Reader by Traci Chee

The Lost and the Found by Cat Clarke

Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee & Susan McClelland

Let me know if you are going to participate in the Bout of Books Read-a-thon as well. I would love to hear what you plan on reading. Also, what book do you think I should read first?

Never Never by Brianna Shrum ~ Impeccable Reviews

Publication Date: September 22, 2015
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy, Fairytale Retelling
Format: eARC (from Netgalley)
Page Count: 356

James Hook is a child who only wants to grow up. When he meets Peter Pan, a boy who loves to pretend and is intent on never becoming a man, James decides he could try being a child - at least briefly. James joins Peter Pan on a holiday to Neverland, a place of adventure created by children's dreams, but Neverland is not for the faint of heart. Soon James finds himself longing for home, determined that he is destined to be a man. But Peter refuses to take him back, leaving James trapped in a world just beyond the one he loves. A world where children are to never grow up. But grow up he does. And thus begins the epic adventure of a Lost Boy and a Pirate. This story isn't about Peter Pan; it's about the boy whose life he stole. It's about a man in a world that hates men. It's about the feared Captain James Hook and his passionate quest to kill the Pan, an impossible feat in a magical land where everyone loves Peter Pan. Except one.

When I tell you I almost did not read this book...I was about to stop, but then there was this voice in my head saying "No. You need to continue," so I did. Thank God I did because this book was excellent! I had some real doubts about it, especially since the first part of the book is a little slow, but the story eventually picked up speed and turned into something magical.

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson ~ Impeccable Reviews

Publication Date: May 12, 2015
Publisher: HarperTeen
Genre: Graphic Novel, Young Adult, Fantasy
Format: Hardcover (from Library)
Page Count: 266

The graphic novel debut from rising star Noelle Stevenson, based on her beloved and critically acclaimed web comic, which Slate awarded its Cartoonist Studio Prize, calling it "a deadpan epic."

Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All these and more await in this brilliantly subversive, sharply irreverent epic from Noelle Stevenson. Featuring an exclusive epilogue not seen in the web comic, along with bonus conceptual sketches and revised pages throughout, this gorgeous full-color graphic novel is perfect for the legions of fans of the web comic and is sure to win Noelle many new ones.

Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren't the heroes everyone thinks they are.

But as small acts of mischief escalate into a vicious battle, Lord Blackheart realizes that Nimona's powers are as murky and mysterious as her past. And her unpredictable wild side might be more dangerous than he is willing to admit.

 Now this is the graphic novel I have been waiting for! If you have read any of my previous graphic novel reviews on this blog, you might know that I usually don't enjoy them as much as I would like or as much as a normal novel, and I have been on the hunt for a graphic novel that just surprises me. One that would fill up my fanatic fiction reader glass and Nimona was finally the one. It did not only fill my fanatic fiction reader glass to the brim, but that stuff overflowed onto the table! I honestly didn't know I could enjoy graphic novels like this, but Nimona has shown me I can and I will not be giving up on graphic novels anytime soon.

Copper Veins by Jennifer Allis Provost ~ Book Spotlight

Series: Copper Legacy #3
Publication Date: July 27, 2016
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy



Sara’s pretty sure her life is perfect.

Not only are she and Micah finally married, her father, who’d been missing since the Magic Wars, has been found. Actually, he just strode up to the manor’s front door, but whatever. Sara knows better than to look a gift horse in the mouth.

But Baudoin Corbeau isn’t content to return to family life. He’s decided that he will be the force of change in the Mundane world, and lead the Elemental resistance to victory with his children at his side. What’s worse, Baudoin doesn’t approve of Sara’s marriage, and makes every attempt to separate her from Micah.

After a visit to the Mundane realm leaves Sara, Max and Sadie imprisoned by the Peacekeepers, Sara’s doubts creep to the surface. Is her father right? Does she belong in the Mundane realm, not the Otherworld? Is Micah really the right man—make that elf—for her?

Was marrying him a mistake?

Should the Experiences of People of Color/Minorities Be Written By Authors Who are Not From the Same Background?

THIS WEEK'S BOOK IS....

Publication Date: January 1, 1960
Publisher: Signet (For this edition)
Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
Page Count: 192 (In this edition)

In the Deep South of the 1950s, journalist John Howard Griffin decided to cross the color line. Using medication that darkened his skin to deep brown, he exchanged his privileged life as a Southern white man for the disenfranchised world of an unemployed black man. His audacious, still chillingly relevant eyewitness history is a work about race and humanity-that in this new millennium still has something important to say to every American.

Now I know I don't talk much about nonfiction on this book blog, but this book...THIS...is a whole different species.

Should the Experiences of People of Color/Minorities Be Written By Authors Who are Not From the Same Background?

Now if you have not read this book, please do, but for those of you who haven't, here are the basics. The author, John Howard Griffin, became interested in exploring the experiences of living as a black man in the Southern U.S. during the 1950s, so he used medicine to darken his skin color. And the result you ask?...Well, we will go ahead and just categorize it as not fun.

But we already would guess this right? If you don't at all understand how blacks have been treated up to this day in the American society, let anti-racism activist and educator, Jane Elliott explain it simply...