Blog Tour + Book Review + Giveaway: Beautiful Broken by Nazarea Andrews

Title: Beautiful Broken (University of Branton #2)

Author: Nazarea Andrews

Pages: 273 paperback

My Rating: 4/5 Stars

Source: I received this book in exchange for an honest and thoughtful review as part of a blog tour hosted by Inkslinger PR

She’s been broken by her past. He’s been breaking for as long as he can remember.

Together, they can make each other whole–or destroy each other.

When his best friend asks for something, Dane rarely says no. But babysitting a newly sober Scout Grimes for three weeks isn’t exactly a normal request. And with their history, it’s a recipe for disaster. Not to mention, she’s drop dead gorgeous and he can’t touch her.

There are few people Scout trusts as much as Dane Guillot. He’s always been her safe place, where nothing can hurt her. He’s also been the only man she’s never let herself want–screwing up their friendship isn’t worth one amazing night together.

They have too much history, and too much personal baggage to ever work. But if they are willing to take a chance on love–it might be worth the risk.

When I read the first book in the University of Branton series, This Love, I was introduced to two characters I was dying to know more about. It just so happens that I was not alone! I am thanking the book Gods and Goddesses today because Nazarea thought these two characters deserved their own book as well and thus Beautiful Broken was born…err published.

We first meet Dane and Scout in This Love. With that being said, these two books can definitely be enjoyed separately but for the full effect, I do think you should read that one first. Anyways, moving on…in This Love you get little glimpses of just who Dane and Scout are and what their relationship appears to be. And then you start Beautiful Broken and Nazarea shows us that there is so much more to these two characters hiding behind the surface.

This particular book starts off sometime after This Love ends. Scout is just getting out of rehab and Dane is there to take care of her just like always. It is easy to tell that Scout has had a troubled, troubled life. From drugs to many failed stints in rehab, to a life of partying and recklessness, and of course that one tragic night long ago that started it all. Even though Scout has tried and failed in the past to stay clean, she really means it this time and she works hard to stay away from drugs despite how hard it is for her. In this book she struggled with her addiction and deep scars from her past…a lot, but that never stopped her from trying to stay clean. Even though she saw herself as this broken person, I couldn’t help but think the opposite, that she was a strong, determined character. What I appreciated most about Scout, even more than her determination and strength, was the fact that she was so very human. She made mistakes, she struggled, she had moments in this book were she was almost at the breaking point. As crazy is it sounds for those things to be my favorite part, it is the truth. Nazarea has such a talent for writing characters that are flawed in the best way possible.

Now here I am going on and on about Scout. And as great of a character as she is, I cannot forget about the one and only Dane. Let me start off by saying I HATED him in This Love. Okay, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration but he dumped coffee on Avery. It’s hard to forget something like that! Despite my initial feelings regarding Dane, I couldn’t help but fall for him in this book. The same fierce protectiveness he has over his best friend, Atticus in This Love, is perhaps shadowed by his feelings for Scout in Beautiful Broken. I love, love, loved how much he clearly cares for her and how much he wants to protect her from the pain of her past. Dane proved to be as strong of a character as Scout. We learn that he is perhaps just as broken as she is but instead of turning to drugs now, he turns to women to cope with the loss of his mother and sister. Watching him support and take care of Scout during her time of need while also dealing with his own demons definitely redeemed him for me and made me almost totally forget the whole dumping of the coffee incident.

The connection between these two was undeniably strong. Dane and Scout have known each other practically their entire lives. Dane has been almost like a second big brother to Scout and considering the fact that he was there to pick up the pieces every time she crumbled apart, you could even say he was much more than a big brother figure to her, he was more like her hero. Dane is just as loyal as he is protective towards his best friend. Seeing how torn he is between his growing feelings for Scout in the not-so-little-sister-way and his promise to Atticus that he would keep Scout safe only solidified that. With a whole lifetime of memories between them and of course Atticus, it would seem like a romance between these two is unlikely. But they each harbor such deep feeling for one another that when the romance does show up, it really shows up. It is no secret that my favorite types of romance is the “I really like you and we shouldn’t be together but we’re going to be anyway” kind and Nazarea hit it head on with these two. I could practically feel their passion for one another through the buttons on my nook.

I adored Scout as a character, adored Dane as a character, and of course adored the history between them. And as much as I adored the romance and sexy times between them as well, I wish this story focused a little less than that and a little more on the underlying, deeper issues in the book. I LOVED that Nazarea focused on addiction and I LOVE that she also focused on rape. I thought she handled both topics, which can both be touchy, with such great care but it still felt a bit unfinished for me. The ending came somewhat abruptly and there was a whole lot going on in the last few chapters so perhaps that’s why I am feeling this way but at the same time, Dane’s issues with his father are left unresolved, Scout, drug free, yes, still has what I am assuming are tons of pent-up feelings after facing her rapist, and then there’s the whole Atticus finding out about them thing that still seemed unfinished to me. The story is great regardless, I just wish a few of those things were addressed a bit more in the last few chapters of the book.

Beautiful Broken proved to be yet another great NA book by Nazarea Andrews. I didn’t think it would be possible but I fell for Dane and Scout’s story just a bit more than Atticus and Avery’s. I appreciated that there was a past between these two. Knowing each other and being there for one another for so many years allowed for a greater level of understanding between them. I loved the romance that built between Dane and Scout but even more, I loved that these two seemingly broken characters were there for one another when they each needed it most. If you read and loved This Love then you need to do yourself a favor and pick up Beautiful Broken real soon!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Nazarea Andrews is an avid reader and tends to write the stories she wants to read. She loves chocolate and coffee almost as much as she loves books, but not quite as much as she loves her kids. She lives in south Georgia with her husband, daughters, and overgrown dog.

Site – http://www.nazareaandrews.com/
Blog – http://www.nazarea-andrews.blogspot.com/
Twitter – https://twitter.com/NazareaAndrews
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nazarea-Andrews/43623123516

PURCHASE THE BOOK:

Amazon: http://amzn.to/15j70xK
Paperback: http://amzn.to/19uHXUc
Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/1bzRxeD

GIVEAWAY:

One very lucky person will be able to win a loaded MP3 player, 2 signed bookmarks, bookplates, and the first 25 pages of Beautiful Broken with editing marks and special extras from Nazarea. All you have to do is fill out this Rafflecopter form! Best of luck!

Blog Tour + Book Playlist + Giveaway: Kiss Me in Paris by Kimberly Kinrade and Dmytry Karpov

Title: Kiss Me In Paris (Kiss Me #1)

Authors: Dmytry Kaprov & Kimberly Kinrade

No one knows my secret. Ever since high school, ever since I started living in fear, no one has known the true me. But then I met him, and I couldn’t hide anymore.

He became my hero, saving me from the villain of my past. He became my friend, his smile a blanket of warmth. And he scared me. Because he, this beautiful man, he might become more. Then he’d see the real me, and I couldn’t let that happen.

My name is Winter, and what I desire most I can’t have.

Flashes of the night I was drugged rush back to me. His strong arms carrying me through the streets of Paris. The feel of his heart beating as my head rested against his chest. The soft press of his lips against my forehead when he thought I was asleep.

Oh shit. I’m falling for the cowboy. Cade.

But we can’t be anything more. He has his own secrets. His own darkness he keeps hidden, like the letter he keeps with him everywhere he goes.

The letter he refuses to open.

I am very excited to have Kimberly and Dmytry here on the blog today! In celebration of their book, Kiss Me In Paris, I have asked them to put together a book playlist of sorts. They did an awesome job! I absolutely LOVED reading their comments about picking songs and then of course, listening through the songs. Be sure to check it out below and of course let us know what you think in the comments section!

Book Playlist:

There are songs that inspired the ideas in our book, Kiss Me in Paris, and songs that inspired us as authors while we were writing. For the purposes of this guest post, we’ve included both kinds of songs.

Kiss Me in Paris is the first book we (Kimberly Kinrade & Dmytry Karpov) have co-written. We’ve worked together on other projects (Dmytry edited and did story consulting for a number of Kimberly’s books), but this was a full-on joint project, and was all the more fun because of it.

Music played an important part in this co-authorship.

While writing, we’d both blast one song continuously through our headphones, for hours on end, inspiring our work. Dmytry did the bulk of detailed outlining, crafting the story and often much of the dialogue, while Kimberly would fill out the prose, add her own dialogue and scenes and flesh things out.

After, we’d both edit each chapter, adding, changing and tweaking until we couldn’t tell who wrote what.

During this process, music inspired us and carried us forward, unlocking that creative part of our minds to let the worlds flow.

For Dmytry that song was Stubborn Love by the Lumineers. For Kimberly it was Demons by Imagine Dragons. We must have listened to those songs at least one hundred times on repeat. But we also listened to a few others, and they all influenced our work. Here are the top ten songs that inspired our novel, Kiss Me in Paris.

All of these songs are fantastic in their own way, and each added a certain energy to the work. Some reminded us of the characters in the book (Gone, Gone, Gone for our favorite cowboy, Cade, and Demons for both Winter and Cade as they faced the demons of their own past), and others represented some of the themes of the book—young love, summer love, hope. (Summertime Sadness, Stay and Stubborn Love, to name a few.)

We hope you take the time to listen to a few or all of them, and that you enjoy them and are inspired by them as much as we are.

As you read Kiss Me in Paris, we’d love to hear which songs resonate for you. We’ll respond to any comments posted here!

About The Authors:

Karpov Kinrade is the pen name for the husband and wife writing duo of bestselling, award-winning authors Kimberly Kinrade and Dmytry Karpov.

Together, they write fantasy, paranormal, mystery, contemporary and romance and hook readers into new and exciting worlds that will leave you laughing your ass off, crying your heart out and falling in love.

Look for more from Karpov Kinrade in the Kiss Me series, Seduced Saga, the Forbidden Trilogy and more coming soon.

They live with three little girls who think they’re ninja princesses with super powers and who are also showing a propensity for telling tall tales and using the written word to weave stories of wonder and magic.

Become a member of the Street Team for Karpov Kinrade.

Connect with Karpov Kinrade on Facebook.

Connect with Kimberly online: Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Amazon, Goodreads.

Connect with Dmytry online: Twitter, Google+, Amazon, Goodreads.

Giveaway:

Be sure to enter this AMAZING giveaway! You will be entered to win a $50 Gift Card or even a copy of the book. Fill out the rafflecopter form here!

Tune In Tuesday (123)

Tune In Tuesday is a weekly feature in which bloggers get to showcase another one of their loves, music! This feature was originally created by Ginger over at GReads! but you can now find it here at Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands. If you would like to participate in this weekly feature, make a blog post showcasing a song (or a few!) and link up at the bottom of this post by clicking the cute blue guy! While you’re here make sure to check out all the other awesome blogs that have decided to participate!

Hello everyone! I hope your Monday treated you well and that your Tuesday is off to an awesome start. This post concludes the special Cover Edition of Tune In Tuesday. I have had an absolute BLAST seeing everyone’s covers and I hope you have enjoyed it as well. And just so we’re clear, the month of October will be another “normal” month for us Tune-In-Tuesday-Ers! I’ve got quite a big post for you guys today because, quite honestly, I couldn’t narrow down the list. I hope you enjoy!

Dead And Gone by Cute Is What We Aim For (Original by T.I. and Justin Timberlake)

If you haven’t yet, you NEED to listen to at least one of the “Punk Goes…” albums. My personal favorite is Punk Goes Classic Rock but the Punk Goes Pop (where this song comes from) is close second. The original got way overplayed on the radio when it first came out but I love this cover of it.

Caught Up In You by We The Kings (Original by .38 Special)

You had to have known I would throw in a We The Kings song. They have done a few covers, The Middle being another favorite, but I just love how fun and upbeat this one is!

You’re The One That I Want by Angus & Julia Stone (Original by John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John)

I love, love, freaking LOVE this version of the song. It is so hauntingly beautiful and totally different from the original.

The One That Got Away by Tiffany Alvord and Chester See (Original by Katy Perry)

Both Tiffany and Chester are amazing artists I found on YouTube. I liked Katy’s version of this song but I really like this version a lot more mostly due to the fact that they slowed it down a lot.

Let Her Go by Tyler Ward (Original by Passenger)

Tyler Ward is another artist I found on YouTube who does some fantastic covers. This particular one is a favorite although it really is hard to narrow it down because I sort of love them all hardcore. He really didn’t change this one up a whole lot from the original and I think that’s what I like most about it.

Ring Of Fire by Lennon and Maisy (Original by Johnny Cash)

Every time I hear these two perform, I am blown away by their natural talent. I could listen to them sing the phone book and I would be entertained for hours and hours but you know what, I think I will stick with a Johnny Cash classic in the meantime.

Bette Davis Eyes by Taylor Swift (Original by Kim Carnes)

Nothing can beat the orignal of this one but I must say, I really enjoy Taylor’s cover of it. Her voice is totally different from Kim’s so it makes for a really interesting cover.

Ho Hey by Boyce Avenue (Original by The Lumineers)

This couldn’t even be called cover edition if I didn’t feature the kings of it, Boyce Avenue. Every cover, and yes, I do mean EVERY. SINGLE. COVER. by them is simply amazing. This guy has some truly amazing skills.

Your Love by Fay Wolf (Original by The Outfield)

This will go down in history as my all-time, absolute FAVORITE cover. EVER. I love the original something fierce; it’s one of those songs I can listen to over and over again but there is just something about this cover that I love just a teensy bit more. Hope you enjoy!

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Blog Tour + Sneak Peek + Giveaway: 3:AM Kisses by Addison Moore

Title: 3:AM Kisses (3:AM Kisses #1)

Author: Addison Moore

Pages: 306 Paperback

Baya Brighton is looking forward to her first year at Whitney Briggs University, new friends, dorm life, and finally being close to her brother again. Love is the last thing on the list, but when Baya meets her brother’s roommate she begins to have thoughts and feelings that make even her blush.

Bryson Edwards has a secret he prefers buried in the past and long forgotten. He prefers loose girls, fast cars, and long nights working at the string of bars his family owns. When his roommate’s sister shows up on the scene, she’s far too innocent and sweet for him but he can’t shake Baya out of his mind and worse, it looks like she’s seeping into his heart as well.

Baya seems determined to show her brother she’s not a little kid and equally determined to use Bryson’s body to prove her point. It’s been made pretty clear that Baya is off limits to Bryson but their undeniable sparks explode into a whole lot more than just a few 3:AM KISSES.

I am very excited to be part of the 3:AM Kisses blog tour! Going away to college, having roommates, and doing the “true college experience” is something I never did so it is books like this that allow me to live vicariously through the characters. I recently purchased this bad boy and cannot wait to get started on it. In celebration of the book’s release and this blog tour, I am sharing a sneak peek of the book from Baya’s point of view and there is also an AWESOME giveaway at the bottom of this post. Be sure to check it all out!

SNEAK PEEK:

I’m pretty sure flashing your boobs at the hottest guy in a ten-mile radius isn’t the best way to meet new friends on move-in day.

“Shit!” I pull my tube top up, quick as a flicker, but it doesn’t matter, “the girls” have already made their startling debut right here in Founder’s Square in front of a demigod who’s witnessed the first of many embarrassing episodes I’m sure to have at Whitney Briggs. “I swear I don’t know how that happened.” I pluck and adjust, while struggling to hold onto the oversized duffle bag I’ve filled with all of my dad’s favorite books. When he died I sort of adopted them, and, now, I’m dragging them around like a body. It was the one bag I didn’t check and thankfully so since the airline sent the rest of my things to Kansas. “It’s like a ghost just pulled it down. Stupid top.”

“I don’t think it’s stupid.” He gives a lopsided grin and my insides squeeze tight. He’s gorgeous, and built, and way the hell out of my league. “I think it’s friendly.” He dips his gaze to my cleavage again as if waiting for a reprisal.

“It’s not friendly, and neither am I.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Addison Moore is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author who writes contemporary and paranormal romance. Previously she worked as a therapist on a locked psychiatric unit for nearly a decade. She resides on the West Coast with her husband, four wonderful children and two dogs where she eats too much chocolate and stays up way too late. When she’s not writing, she’s reading.

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GIVEAWAY:

Be sure to enter this AWESOME giveaway for a chance to win an e-copy of Someone To Love and The Solitude Of Passion. All you have to do is fill out this rafflecopter form!

Cover Reveal: Meant For Her by Raine Thomas

Title: Meant For Her

Author: Raine Thomas

Publisher: Iambe Books LLC.

Publication Date: October 17th 2013

Cover Design: Regina Wamba of www.MaeIDesign.com

Cover Photos: Kelsey Kukal-Keeton of K Keeton Designs

Photographer Sierra Stratton views the world through a lens all her own. She has an uncanny sense about people, something that often causes her trouble. When she meets the sexy and brooding Evan Dorsey, her intuition tells her he’s suffering, and she wants to be the one to help him.

Evan isn’t open to help from anyone, however. His focus is on his Major League career and making himself as marketable as possible for his upcoming free agency. He plans to ride out the season in Atlanta and then sign with another team, away from the painful memories that haunt him.

Someone’s eager to send him on his way, too. Between anonymous threats and equipment sabotage, it’s clear he’s earned himself an enemy along the way. To him, it’s one more sign that he’s right to move on.

But Sierra threatens his conviction. Her contagious smile proves hard to resist, as does her kiss. She tempts him in ways he never anticipated, making him question his plans for the first time. If he’s not careful, she might just convince him that he’s meant for her.

I am beyond thrilled that I am able to be part of the cover reveal for Raine Thomas’s upcoming New Adult novel, Meant For Her. I fell in love first with Raine’s fantasy series and then fell even more in love with her previous New Adult novel, For Everly. To say that I am excited for this new one to release is a bit of an understatement Govn’r! And since I know you are all here to see an awesome cover and not hear me ramble off Easy A quotes, let’s move on!

So what do you think? Awesome right!?! I love, love, LOVE the couple! I mean he is rather easy on the eyes and her highlights are pretty freaking awesome so together they make one good looking couple. I also love that baseball makes an appearance on the bottom portion of the cover.

Be sure to check out all the additional info & links below and of course, let us know what you think about the cover in the comments section!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Raine Thomas is the author of bestselling YA and NA romantic fiction, including the award-winning Estilorian series. She’s a proud member of Romance Writers of America and is a contributing blogger to The Writer’s Voice. When she isn’t planning weddings, writing, or glued to social networking sites, she can usually be found on one of Florida’s beautiful beaches with her husband and daughter or crossing the border to visit with her Canadian friends and relatives.

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WHERE TO FIND THE BOOK:

Goodreads

Purchase For Everly so you can meet a few of the characters before they make an appearance in Meant For Her:

Amazon // Barnes & Noble

Tune In Tuesday (122)

Tune In Tuesday is a weekly feature in which bloggers get to showcase another one of their loves, music! This feature was originally created by Ginger over at GReads! but you can now find it here at Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands. If you would like to participate in this weekly feature, make a blog post showcasing a song (or a few!) and link up at the bottom of this post by clicking the cute blue guy! While you’re here make sure to check out all the other awesome blogs that have decided to participate!

Happy Tuesday everyone! For those of you just joining us, Tune In Tuesday is a bit special this month because we are all sharing our favorite cover songs! If you have a cover song you would like to share, just make up a blog post featuring it and come back here to link up and check out everyone else’s picks as well. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

This week I have a random mix of awesome. I hope you all enjoy!

I Can’t Make You Love Me/Nick Of Time by Bon Iver (Original by Bonnie Raitt)

Last week I shared a cover of a Bon Iver song and this week I couldn’t help but share Bon Iver covering a song. I love the original but I love his version just a bit more!

Don’t You (Forget About Me) by KT Tunstall (Original by Simple Minds)

To me, nothing could EVER top the original song. I mean, it is simple perfection. BUT I love how incredibly different KT made it for her version.

Just Like Heaven by AFI (Original by The Cure)

If you’ve been to the blog before then odds are you know how big of a fan-girl I am of all things The Cure. AFI didn’t change up the song a whole lot which is why I think I like it as a cover. Just Like Heaven is pretty much perfect the way it is.

Heartless by The Fray (Original by Kanye West)

I love this cover so much more than the original partly because I cannot stand Kanye (he really does have some pretty catchy songs but his personality makes it awfully hard for me to enjoy them. Sad but true.) and also partly because I love The Fray.

Radioactive by Lindsey Stirling & Pentatonix (Original by Imagine Dragons)

I absolutely adore this cover to pieces. The classical instruments mixed with the lyrics give off this incredible, haunting vibe. However if I am being totally honest, basically ANYTHING Lindsey cover with her violin turns out to be a favorite of mine. Also, I get to see Imagine Dragons in concert tonight (squee!!!) so I had to honor them somehow!

LINK UP HERE:

Tune In Tuesday (121)

Tune In Tuesday is a weekly feature in which bloggers get to showcase another one of their loves, music! This feature was originally created by Ginger over at GReads! but you can now find it here at Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands. If you would like to participate in this weekly feature, make a blog post showcasing a song (or a few!) and link up at the bottom of this post by clicking the cute blue guy! While you’re here make sure to check out all the other awesome blogs that have decided to participate!

Hi there everyone! I hope you are having a lovely Tuesday! This month Tune In Tuesday is extra fun because we are doing Cover Edition! I absolutely love finding covers of songs that I can’t seem to get enough of. Today’s songs are a mix of some of my favorite covers and I am beyond excited to share them with you. I hope you enjoy!

Skinny Love by Gavin Mikhail (Original by Bon Iver)

I am a bit torn on which one I like more, the cover or the original. I think I am just going to have to call this one a draw because they are both pretty freaking amazing.

Price Tag by The Wombats (Original by Jessie J)

I am a huge fan of the Mashup Mondays that Billboard used to do. It was a fun way of seeing a different side to bands that I love. I love The Wombats something fierce and the fact that they can sing a song that I loathe and actually make me love it just shows how talented they are.

Dreams by Augustana (Original by Fleetwood Mac)

This is another Mashup Monday song I came across a looong time ago. I have been a Fleetwood Mac fan since I was a little girl. That is the stuff I grew up on so it’s only natural that I love their stuff even now. I was a bit worried at first to see a band I love (Augustana) do such a well-known song, especially one that is among my favorites but I think they did an incredible job with it. I love that they kept their “Augustana tone” to it.

Sweet Nothing by Corey Gray & Madilyn Bailey (Original by Calvin Harris & Florence Welch)

I love everything about this version of the song. I liked the original okay but there’s just something about the cover that I LOVE!

Friday I’m In Love by Scars On 45 (Original by The Cure)

This is one of my all-time favorite covers. Why you ask? Well first off, The Cure is one of my go-to bands. Their music never fails when it comes to putting a smile on my face. Secondly, I adore Scars on 45 to absolute pieces. Seriously. I have found myself sharing their music here on the blog time and time again but I have to say, this is pretty high up there as far as a favorite of their songs. I love that they slowed the song down and put their own spin on it. It almost sounds like a totally different song!

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Blog Tour + Book Review + Giveaway: Darker Days by Jus Accardo

“Our fires burn brightly for our readers and as a way to say thanks to our readers we’ve launched our latest division of Entangled Teen and it’s name is Ember. We have two exciting launch titles: Darker Days by Jus Accardo and Chaos by Christine O’Neil. Read away!” Entangled Teen Ember is a division of Entangled Teen that specializes in digital-first YAs.

As part of the Entangled Teen EMBER blog tour today, I will be reviewing one of their newly launched titles, Darker Days. I have my review for it below but I wanted to also take a second to share the links for their other release, Chaos. This book looks AMAZING and I definitely think you should give it a go!

Goodreads I Amazon I Barnes & Noble I Chrisitne’s Twitter I Website

MY REVIEW:

Title: Darker Days (The Darker Agency #1)

Author: Jus Accardo

Publisher: Entangled

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

Source: I received an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest and thoughtful review as part of this blog tour

Jessie Darker goes to high school during the day, but at night she helps with the family investigation business. Cheating husbands and stolen inheritances? They’re your girls—but their specialty is a bit darker. Zombie in your garage? Pesky Poltergeist living in your pool? They’ll have the problem solved in a magical minute. For a nominal fee, of course…

When gorgeous new client, Lukas Scott, saunters into the office requesting their help to find a stolen box, it sounds like a simple case—until the truth comes out. The box is full of Sin.

Seven deadly ones, in fact.

They’ve got five days to recapture the Sins before they’re recalled by the box, taking seven hijacked human bodies with them. Easy peasy—except for one thing…

There’s a spell that will allow the Sins to remain free, causing chaos forever. When the key ingredient threatens the life of someone she knows, Jessie must make the ultimate choice between love and family—or lose everything.

If you are looking for a fun, fast-paced book with lots of twist and turns, a few stolen moments with a hot, walking, talking sin, and a paranormal twist that felt incredibly fresh, then this is most certainly the book for you. I don’t know quite what I was expecting with this book but I found myself absolutely loving every aspect of it.

I found Jessie to be such a fun character! She is spunky (a compliment, according to her), determined, stubborn (even when it gets her into trouble), and an all-around fun character. Even though these qualities of hers often got her in less-than-stellar situations, I just couldn’t help but admire Jessie for the strength and determination she showed. When things got tough, she did what had to be done to solve the problem. With an annoying demon dog following her around, the seven deadly sins running rampant in her town, a demon father, a protective mother, and an unconventional job, it safe to say she had her fair share of these “problems” but that never got her down. She just kept going. On top of all of this, she was also funny and oddly easy to relate to. I couldn’t exactly relate to the more paranormal aspects of her life, my dad is demon-blood free as far as I know, but some of the other stuff like dealing with over-protective parents, trying to prove that you can handle things on your own, getting your first kiss, and falling in love, it was all of those other things she encountered that made her journey, with as crazy and out-of-this-world as it seemed, just a little bit more believable.

Throughout this story, I fell in love with Jus’s writing. The overall idea of the book was fascinating. I mean, its the seven deadly sins in the living flesh. How cool is that? But in addition to that there’s also this whole paranormal side of things. Like demons and zombies that are living among us…okay not living perse but you know what I mean and it’s Jessie and her mom’s job to take them out. This story had plenty of opportunities to get down-right confusing with all it’s twists and turns but Jus’s writing allowed me to get totally absorbed in the story with zero confusion. I felt like I was right there with Jessie and the whole gang trying to figure this whole thing out.

On top of Jessie being awesome, the premise of the story being awesome, and the writing being well, you guessed it, awesome, I also fell in love with other aspects of the book. The other characters for one. Jessie mom was a good character. I liked the fact that even though she sends her daughter out to take down a zombie as a form of punishment, she also has all the other characteristics that make a good mom. She worries about Jessie, looks after her, and sort of drives her crazy with all the over-protection. Even though that sort of thing would have drove me crazy too, I like that she was there, caring, worrying about, and looking after Jessie. I also found myself loving, and I’m not putting that lightly, Wrath. One of the Seven Deadly Sins. Okay, he wasn’t Wrath exactly, him and Wrath just happened to share the same body. But when I say Lukas was as full of Swoon as he was of Wrath, I’ll hope you understand what I mean. The boy was awesome. First off, he should be a bad guy, I mean he does have Wrath inhabiting his body, but despite this he was a good guy through and through. Secondly, he had all the gentlemanly qualities you would expect of someone from the 1800’s because well, he is. And thirdly, he’s there for Jessie regardless of how annoying, nosy, pushy, or stubborn he thinks she’s being. Watching him and Jessie bond in the midst of all the craziness they were facing was one of my favorite parts.

If you couldn’t tell from my review, I absolutely loved this one. I found myself absolutely, 110% absorbed in this story. I loved the paranormal-ness, I loved the action scenes, I loved the swoony-ness, I loved the characters, basically I loved everything about it. Do yourself a favor and give this one a read and join me in grueling, forever-away wait until book #2 comes out!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

JUS ACCARDO spent her childhood reading and learning to cook. Determined to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps as a chef, she applied and was accepted to the Culinary Institute of America. At the last minute, she realized her path lay with fiction, not food, and passed on the spot to pursue writing. Jus is the bestselling author the popular Denazen series from Entangled publishing. A native New Yorker, she lives in the middle of nowhere with her husband, three dogs, and sometimes guard bear, Oswald.

Twitter | Website | Facebook | Blog | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY:

Be sure to check out this AWESOME giveaway with prizes from both Jus AND Christine! Click the link provided and fill out the Rafflecopter form. Best of luck!

Enter the giveaway here!

Cover Reveal + Giveaway: Aspen by Rebekah Crane

I am so excited to be helping to share the cover of Rebekah Crane’s next YA contemporary novel, ASPEN, today and not only because one of the characters in the book has my exact same name…although that may play a small part in the excitement!

Now that that’s out of the we’ve had a bit of a dance fest, let’s learn a little more about Aspen and of course get to the part we’ve all been waiting for, the cover and giveaway!

Title: Aspen

Author: Rebekah Crane

Release Date: January 2014

Publisher: In This Together Media

One quiet night in Boulder, Colorado, Aspen Yellow-Sunrise Taylor made a mistake.

In the next instant, her life changed forever.

Aspen doesn’t want to remember when Katelyn Ryan, a sleek-haired popular soccer player, crossed the yellow line in her car and smashed into Aspen’s. But forgetting is pretty hard- because Katelyn may have died – but she didn’t leave. Her ghost is following Aspen around, and heading into senior year, it’s kind of a problem. Especially when Katelyn’s gorgeous former boyfriend Ben appears to be the only person at school with a clue as to how Aspen feels.

Popularity, college, Homecoming Court, hot guys – none of these things ever mattered to Aspen. She’s been busy trying to rein in her giant mass of blonde curls, keep her stoner mother Ninny away from Toaster, her mom’s awful bongo drumming boyfriend, and prevent her best friends Kim and Cass from killing – or kissing – one another. But with Ben sitting next to her in Physics looking all too gorgeous, Katelyn’s spirit dogging her steps, and her obsessive snow-globe collecting therapist begging her to remember all the things she wants to forget, Aspen is thrust into a vivid, challenging world she can’t control … and doesn’t want to.

A darkly funny, emotionally gripping story of opening up, letting go, and moving on, ASPEN is about the best-worst accident of your life … and what comes next.

I just love this cover! It’s cute, it’s fun, it’s quirky, AND it makes me want to read the book that much more! Please be sure to tell us what you think about the cover in the comments section and of course, check out the details for the incredible giveaway below!

GIVEAWAY:

10 eARCs of ASPEN!

1 tie-dye shirt from Moe’s Broadway Bagels in Boulder, CO (an actual restaurant in the story!)

2 Grateful Dead bumper stickers! Groovy!

5 Friendship bracelets because WHY NOT?!

1 hacky sack! Rad!

3 flower stickers you can stick to your laptop or desk or wherever! Peace, man!

Just enter the Rafflecopter below by following the link and you’re on your way to getting some awesome swag!  The giveaway closes a week from today.

Enter the giveaway here!

About The Author:

Rebekah Crane fell in love with YA literature while studying Secondary English Education at Ohio University, but it wasn’t until ten years and two daughters later that she started to write it. Inspired by her past students, growing up in Cleveland with its fabulous musical theater community, and music of all kinds (particularly the Avett Brothers), she created PLAYING NICE. It is her first published novel, but having an unbridled imagination, it’s not the only fantasy world she’s lived in (just ask her husband). ASPEN, her second YA creation, is set to release in January 2014. She now lives in Colorado, where the altitude only enhances the experience.

Twitter: @RebekahCrane

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/playingnicebook

Tumblr: http://rebekahcrane.tumblr.co

Tune In Tuesday (120)

Tune In Tuesday is a weekly feature in which bloggers get to showcase another one of their loves, music! This feature was originally created by Ginger over at GReads! but you can now find it here at Kate’s Tales of Books and Bands. If you would like to participate in this weekly feature, make a blog post showcasing a song (or a few!) and link up at the bottom of this post by clicking the cute blue guy! While you’re here make sure to check out all the other awesome blogs that have decided to participate!

Hello and welcome to the first week of Tune In Tuesday: Cover Edition! For those of you just tuning in, for the month of September us Tune In Tuesday-ers are going to be showing off our favorite cover songs! I am incredibly excited for this fun feature and I hope you all are as well. For the most part, Tune In Tuesday will run exactly the same. You make up your post, share a song or two, come back here to link up at the bottom of the post, and then visit everyone else’s posts to see what they are sharing. The only thing that is different is the fact that we are featuring covers of our favorite songs this month.

Cover songs have quickly become a favorite of mine. I just absolutely LOVE it when I can enjoy an original song for what it is and also enjoy someone else’s take on it. There have been moments where I absolutely HATE an original song but then an artist I love does something different to it and I can’t seem to stop listening to it. There have also been moments in which I thought I liked an original version of a song until I heard an amazing cover of it and realized I couldn’t be more wrong. I’ve put together a few of my favorite covers below for you to listen to. I hope you enjoy!

Be My Baby by Hey Ocean! (Original by The Ronettes)

This is one of those songs in which I really can’t decide which one I like better! Seriously, both versions are so good!

Strawberry Swing by Artist Vs. Poet (Original by Coldplay)

Okay, don’t hate me. I love Coldplay, I absolutely do BUT this is one of those instances where I like the original just find but I happen to like the cover more. Artist Vs. Poet does some really fun, awesome covers one of my other favorites being “Mean” by Taylor Swift!

Blurred Lines by Addie Hamilton (Original by Robin Thicke)

This is another strange case. I absolutely loathe the original version of this song. Robin creeps me out like no other and I always rush to change the station every time it comes on. However, I absolutely adore Addie’s version of it. Her voice has that hint of raspiness in it and I feel like it just fits this song so well!

I Wanna Love You by The Maine (Original by Akon)

I like the original just fine. BUT I just happen to love The Maine something fierce so when they first came out with this cover, I went psycho and listened to it over and over again for weeks straight. It’s just so good, regardless of the somewhat dirty lyrics.

Lollipop by Framing Hanley (Original by Lil Wayne)

*The actual song doesn’t really start until about 2:15*

There is just something so awesome about this cover. I think it’s this whole “opposites attract” thing. It is so crazy-weird to see a rock band sing a rap song but in this particular case, it turned out to be pretty amazing.

LINK YOUR POST HERE: