Building the Book Pile #80

Welcome to Building the Book Pile!  A Weekly meme inspired by Stacking the Shelves

Hello Readers, Bloggers, and Awesome people! 

What's Happening?!

This has been another eventful week, not for books though (sadly). I closed on a house :) - finally!!! So now I am moving (again, but this should be the last time)

Because of all this madness and going to work, I have not gotten much reading done.

 

Giveaways Going on NOW!   

 

Click pic to be taken to the giveaway!

Others may be linked on the right sidebar :) check them out!

 

Coming up on the Blog...

Review: The Hocus Pocus Hotel: The Thirteenth Mystery
Book Blast: Orphan and the Thief (MG) -- Review the following week.
Pot of Gold Giveaway Tour

Books This Week:

    

The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski (audiobook) from Random House Audio for Review

The Mirk and Midnight Hour by Jane Nickerson (audiobook) from Random House Audio for Review
 

Have you missed anything lately?

Blog Blitz: Resurrection (YA) + Giveaway

Cover Reveal: Guarding Angel (Adult)
 Blog Tour: Review-- Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse (MG)
Blog Blitz: Resistance (YA) + Giveaway

  Comment and leave me a link to your Round-up/ STS/ Weekly...anything post and I will happily stop by and say hello!

 Happy Reading!

Guest Post & Giveaway! -- Resistance (Variant Series #2) by Jena Leigh

Resistance by Jena Leigh 
(The Variant Series #2)
Publication date: February 11th 2014
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult

About the Book:

Alexandra Parker might be the most powerful Variant the world has ever seen—but even that won’t get her out of finishing her junior year of high school.

The challenge of keeping her abilities under wraps during class is daunting enough, but throw one surly, sandy-haired Jumper into the mix, and things can get downright complicated.

Declan’s new job? Watch over Alex while she’s at school and do everything in his power to keep her from losing control. But as sparks of every kind begin flying between Alex and her new bodyguard, she's left feeling more unstable than ever.

When avoiding her abilities results in a surprise visit from her parents’ killer, Alex’s worlds collide with a bang that nearly levels Bay View High.

With her freedom now squarely in the Agency’s crosshairs, Alex will be faced with the fight of her life... and a decision that could forever alter the course of her destiny.

Goodreads

Purchase:

--Amazon

--B&N

--Smashwords

Click Read More for the Guest Post and GIVEAWAYS!

Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway! -- Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse by Lars Guignard

Thanks for stopping by my tour stop on the audiobook tour for Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse by Lars Guignard. This is a middle grade fantasy adventure for ages 8+.  Check out the tour page for the full list of tour stops.

Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse by Lars Guignard
Read by Sonja Field
Genre: Middle Grade Magic, Fantasy Adventure. Ages 8-13
Length:  audiobook length is 7 hours 36 minutes  
Publication Date: November 20, 2013

Zoe and Zak are back in India. Again. And this time they’re attending Moonstock Himalayan Boarding School, which might seem fun except for the fact that the school itself is a little strange. Students ride elephants instead of school buses, snarling monkeys work as security guards, and angry parrots monitor the halls. And even when they manage to get used to the wildlife, the food is absolutely terrible. But living with a bunch of other kids their age can be a lot of fun, too, or at least it seems that way until Zoe’s roommate goes missing. Following the directions written on a steamy bathroom mirror, Zoe and Zak fly through the clouds on their magic carpet to learn that the two of them have been chosen yet again. This time they’ve been asked to lift the Yogi’s Curse. It’s not going to be easy. Zoe and Zak don’t even know what the Yogi’s Curse is let alone how to lift it, but like it or not, they soon discover that a whole lot of people are depending on them. Now, if they’re going to save the day, Zoe and Zak are going to have to fool the monkey guards, avoid the nasty parrots, and maybe even develop a supernatural ability or two. Because lurking beneath Moonstock is a powerful new enemy. And if Zoe and Zak can’t stop him, nobody can.

My Rating:

To get myself ready for book 2 in the Zoe & Zak series, I listened to the end of the first book again to refresh my memory of the awesome adventure that took place in book 1. Book 2 in the first half kind of let me down a little bit because of this though. What happened to the relationship Zoe and Zak had at the end of the last book?! They were so close and reading each other so well to help the Leopard and get back home in one piece. Now I know that time has passed, they went back to the US and packed up to essentially move to India for the next school year, and I know Zoe is homesick and misses her mother, but come on, they are so disconnected in the beginning of the story it made me sad and a little frustrated. 

That being said, I still loved the adventure in this book, the setting of India and their school and new characters was awesome. The descriptions the author uses through Zoe's eyes were well formed and made me long for the first day of school again - the stress, the nervousness, the new school supplies, the people and teacher (yea I am a nerd). It was wonderful. 

I loved the play on characters returning and new bad guys and the overall adventure and mysteries the kids solve while trying to figure out what is going one. LOVE IT.

I think this book could be for all readers and age groups, the reader was spectacular, a little different from the last one but just as fun and alternated between voices well. I think both kids and parents will love to listen to this book together. I really do love this series and the fact that it is set in India, which is not a common Middle Grade plot setting. I continue to learn a lot from the series and hope to learn and love more of it as it continues. 

Audible |  iTunes | Amazon  | GoodReads

We want to invite all of you to ask the author and narrator your own questions on the Author's Goodreads Group and they will answer them on March 1st! 

Some things people are saying: 

"I have a 10 year old son who is an avid reader!! He loves Books,(but he's picky too) he loved Harry Potter and Percy Jackson. He was so excited to read the 2nd book in this series! When I presented him the first book he was not sure he would like it but changed his mind quickly, then when I heard about the 2nd book being released he almost jumped out of his chair! (no exaggeration) He is anxiously awaiting the 3rd book! I would say that any child who enjoys fantasy/adventure books should read this series! It is a well written page turner! It’s a fun story that adults can even enjoy the storyline without getting bored! According to my son, ‘every kid should read this series’.” 5-Star review from savygreensaver.com

“Lars Guignard has done a fabulous job with this series. I loved the `Ghost Leopard’ & love this one even more. For late-elementary to middle school age readers, you can’t beat this series. It’s fun and fast-paced. Even my picky fifth grader enjoyed every page. There are bits of magic thrown in keep the action exciting. Mr. Guignard has a brilliant imagination & readers are blessed that he’s chosen to use it for YA fiction. If you’ve yet to read the first installment in this series, do yourself a favor and read these books back to back. Don’t limit it just to kids! Adults will have a blast reading these too!” ~ 5-Star review from Liz Terek, Amazon

"The action is non-stop and plot twists and turns keep readers hanging onto their magic carpets as they fly along with our heroes. The magicality is wonderful, using legends and fantasy elements from Indian culture and mythology. There are no instant spells ‘imported’ into the story: all the enchantment belongs firmly in India, using cultural and folkloric aspects that will no doubt get young readers interested in reading up more about the background." 5-Star review from Fiona Ingram, author of The Secret of the Sacred Scarab  

"Yogi’s Curse is a non-stop thrilling adventure featuring the ever-entertaining tweens, Zoe and Zak, now attending boarding school in India. Armed with Zoe’s growing yogi powers and Zak’s trusty whip Stryker, the duo must rely on their wits when a new evil descends on the school and students begin disappearing. Lars Guignard keeps up the pace with this second installment in the Zoe and Zak Adventure series. I recommend this series to tweens and teens who love a great adventure steeped with magic and mysticism. Ages 8+." 5-Star review from motherdaughterbookreviews.com 

 
About the Author:

Prior to writing novels, Lars Guignard wrote for film and television. As a teenager he attended boarding school in the Indian Himalayas and his experiences there provided the inspiration for the Zoe and Zak series which now include: Zoe & Zak and the Ghost Leopard and Zoe & Zak and the Yogi’s Curse and Zoe & Zak and the Tiger Temple.

He lives in the Pacific Northwest where he dodges bears and cougars while hiking & skiing the magnificent Coast Mountain Range.

For news about new releases, please join his email list here: Zoe&ZakAdventures@gmail.com

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

 

About the narrator:
Sonja Field combines her life-long passion for reading with her skill as an actress to bring audiobooks to life! A dynamic and versatile narrator, she has logged hundreds of hours recording textbooks with an organization called Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic. She loved recording the action-packed Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse because of its wealth of colorful, quirky, and memorable characters.

Giveaway:

 2 copies of Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse in ebook (worldwide), paperback (US only) or audiobook (where audible.com is accessible)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 This tour was organized by CBB Book Promotions.

 

Cover Reveal: Guarding Angel by S.L.Saboviec

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Guarding Angel by S. L. Saboviec 
(Fallen Redemption #1)
Publication date: April 28th 2014
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
 
About the Book

Guardian angel Enael can’t seem to keep her human Wards in check. They’re the ones who choose their paths before reincarnating—-she’s just there to help make sure they stay on track. But it’s not as easy as it might look.

When she meets and falls in love with charismatic Kaspen, a fellow Guardian, Enael’s feelings about Heaven, Hell, demons, and the life she’s known are turned upside down. Worse still, angel-turned-demon Yasva, Kaspen’s former love, still holds him in her clutches. Even as Yasva works toward obtaining complete control of Earth, she taunts and haunts Kaspen’s and Enael’s lives.

Now Enael is forced to face her past (which is centuries long and bursting with secrets), her present (which is terribly unfulfilling and full of questions), and her future (which becomes more uncertain as time passes). Armed with a newfound love and fear of losing it all, she must figure out how to save the world—-and the angel she loves. Which side will win? Who will Kaspen choose? Will Heaven and Earth continue to exist, or will everything go to Hell?

Goodreads

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AUTHOR BIO

S. L. Saboviec grew up in a small town in Iowa but now lives in the suburbs of Toronto with her Canadian husband and expatriate cat. Books that captured her imagination include Isaac Asimov’s The Gods Themselves, Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game series, Sylvia Browne’s The Other Side and Back, and Stephanie Meyers’ The Host. You can find her tweeting random nonsense on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/saboviec), pinning all the awesome fantasy and book pins on Pinterest (http://www.pinterest.com/saboviec), and opining about the latest book she read on her blog (http://saboviec.wordpress.com).

Blog Blitz: Excerpt and Giveaway! -- Resurrection by Laury Falter

Resurrection by Laury Falter 
(Apocalypse Chronicles #2)
Publication date: January 18th 2014
Genres: Horror, Post-Apocalyptic, Young Adult, Zombies

Synopsis:

The second and final installment in the two-book series, Apocalypse Chronicles…a dystopian romance about five high school seniors who set out to cure an apocalyptic world of a contagious infection.

Bestselling author Laury Falter finishes off this two-part series–a dystopian romance filled with an electrifying plot, a powerful romance, and unexpected twists.

Building the Book Pile #79

Welcome to Building the Book Pile!  A Weekly meme inspired by Stacking the Shelves

Hello Readers, Bloggers, and Awesome people! 
What's Happening?!

WOW! This week was a wonderful one. I got a huge box of books from Lisi Harrison :) and Valentine's Day was this week and my husband gave me dragon mount in World of Warcraft (yes I am this nerdy) and it was an AMAZING gift :D.

How was your Valentine's? Do anything fun?! - Let me know in the comments! 

OH! And Valentines Day was my 2 Year Blogversary! 

Giveaways Going on NOW!   

 

Click pic to be taken to the giveaway!

Others may be linked on the right sidebar :) check them out!

 

Coming up on the Blog...

Blog Blitz: Resurrection (YA) + Giveaway
 Blog Tour: Review-- Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse (MG)
Blog Blitz: Resistance (YA) + Giveaway

Books This Week:

    

 

I won a giveaway and got this wonderful box from Lisi Harrison and Hachette Book Group. Included were the following:

Pretenders by Lisi Harrison - HB Signed

The Clique by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed
Revenge of the Wannabes by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed
Best Friends for Never by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed 
Invasion of the Boy Snatchers by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed   
The Pretty Committee Strikes Back by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed   
Dial L for Loser by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed
It's Not Easy Being Mean  by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed 
Sealed with a Diss by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed
Bratfest at Tiffany's by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed 
P.S. I Loathe You by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed which includes stickers in the back
Boy R Us by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed which includes a poster in the back
These Boots are Made for Stalking by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed which includes tattoos in the back
My Little Phony by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed
The Tale of Two Pretties  by Lisi Harrison - PB Signed which includes a poster in the back
For the Clique series on Goodreads: CLICK HERE 
 
Also in the box were stickers and some pens and a personalize note (all the books are personalized too) 

I also got some other mail and things:

 
Where Life Takes You by Claudia Y. Burgoa -- PS Signed

My Secret Valentine Card from Cindy @  Cindy's Love of Books

She sent a bunch of bookmarks and stickers :)

Have you missed anything lately?

Cover Reveal: Get Even by Grethen McNeil (YA) 

Cover Reveal: Dead Girl Walking by Ruth Silver (YA)

Blog Tour: Review -- Root Bound by Tanya Karen Gough (MG)

Marked Hearts Valentine's Day Blitz

Guest Post: Top 5 YA of 2014 so Far

  Comment and leave me a link to your Round-up/ STS/ Weekly...anything post and I will happily stop by and say hello!

 Happy Reading!

Guest Post! Top 5 YA books of 2014 (so Far) with Author Margo Bond Collins

Kicking off 2014 with a YA Bang: Top 5 YA Books of 2014 (so far)

By Margo Bond Collins

2014 has only just started, and already I’ve read a whole pile of excellent YA books! Here are just a few of my favorites from the first six weeks of 2014, in no particular order:

Untethered by Katie Hayoz  

Purchase on Amazon

This book was recommended by another book blogger as the best YA book she had read in 2013, and as soon as I started reading, I figured out why. Hayoz’s prose is flawless and her characters engrossing—even when I wanted to kick Sylvie, the astral-projecting protagonist, I believed in her completely.  I was so deeply involved in this book that I completely forgot to cook dinner one night; I looked up and it was almost midnight!

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner    

Purchase on Amazon

LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen are from different worlds, but when their starship crashes and they are stranded together on an apparently abandoned planet, they must learn to work together if they are going to survive—and if they are going to discover the source of the whispers and visions that haunt them in this strange place. I’m rarely taken completely by surprise when reading, but These Broken Stars did just that—it’s a haunting story, and I’m anxious for the next entry in the series.

Scintillate by Tracy Clark 

Purchase on Amazon

The end of this book left me gasping and wanting more—what starts out as a fairly traditional paranormal romance quickly turns into an amazing mystery/romance/thriller. Cora Sandoval, whose life-threatening illness leaves her with the ability to see auras, heads out to find her long-lost mother and discovers a whole world of power and magic. I can’t wait for the sequel!

Such Sweet Sorrow by Jenny Trout (a pen name of Jennifer Armentrout) 
 Purchase on Amazon

 In this novel, Romeo and Hamlet take a trip through the underworld in order to find Romeo’s love, Juliet. This novel delighted me, in part because I’m a college professor in my other life and have taught both Shakespeare and a whole slew of traditional heroic tales. Trout draws on and transforms literary tradition in entertaining ways in this book.

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black  

Purchase on Amazon

 I actually read this book for the first time at the very end of 2013, but I re-read it almost instantly in January because I love it so very much. I adored Black’s short story of the same name and was initially a little disappointed to discover that the novel was not, in fact, a continuation of the same story but rather a new story set in the same world. But that disappointment quickly disappeared as Black’s novel drew me in. Black has called this novel her “love letter” to vampire novels, and the vampires here are horrifying—being the single (potential) exception to that rule makes the love-interest vampire equally terrifying and attractive, adding up to the kind of vicarious adrenaline rush that draws me to vampire tales in the first place. 

Honorable Mention:
World After by Susan Ee  

Purchase on Amazon

 

This is the sequel to Ee’s amazing Angelfall, a post-apocalyptic story of humans struggling to survive in the days after an attack by an angelic host. This second novel is in some ways even darker than the first, but it does a good job of continuing the story and setting the reader up for the next novel.

My own YA novel, Fairy, Texas, was released in February. 
Purchase on Amazon

Blurb:

Fairy, Texas. A small town like any other.

Laney Harris didn't want to live there. When her mother remarried and moved them to a town where a date meant hanging out at the Sonic, Laney figured that "boring" would have a whole new meaning. A new stepsister who despised her and a high school where she was the only topic of gossip were bad enough. But when she met the school counselor (and his terminal bad breath), she grew suspicious. Especially since he had wings that only she could see. And then there were Josh and Mason, two gorgeous glimmering-eyed classmates whose interest in her might not be for the reasons she hoped. Not to mention that dead guy she nearly tripped over in gym class.

She was right. Boring took on an entirely new dimension in Fairy, Texas.

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Fairy High could have fit into one wing of my old school. The three-story, red brick building looked like it had been around for at least a century—it actually had carvings over two of the doorways that read “Men’s Entrance” and “Women’s Entrance.” I was glad to see that none of the kids paid any attention to those instructions.

            “Counselor’s office,” I muttered to myself. At least I wasn’t starting in the middle of a term—though given the fact that there were fewer than 500 students in the entire high school, I didn’t think I was going to be able to go unnoticed, even in the general bustle of the first day back from summer vacation.

            I walked through the door marked “Men’s Entrance,” just be contrary, and faced a long hallway lined with heavy wooden doors. The spaces in between the doors were filled with lockers and marble staircases with ornate hand-rails flanked each end of the long hallway. Students poured in behind me, calling out greetings to each other and jostling me off to the side while I tried to get my bearings. None of the doors obviously led to a main office; I was going to have to walk the entire length of the hallway. And people were already starting to stare and whisper.

            God. I hated being the new kid.

            I took a deep breath and stepped forward. I made it halfway down the hall without seeing anything informative—all the doors had numbers over them and many of them had name plaques, but neither of those things did me any good since I didn’t know the name or office number for the counselor. I was almost getting desperate enough to ask Kayla, but of course she was nowhere to be seen.

            I turned back from scanning the halls for her and caught sight of the first adult I’d seen—and almost screamed. As it was, I gasped loudly enough for a guy walking past me to do a double take. The man standing in the open doorway was tall, over six feet, and way skinny—so emaciated that it looked like you ought to be able to see his ribs through his shirt, if his shirt didn’t hang so loosely on him. He had white hair that stuck out in tufts, thin lips, a sharp nose, and pale blue eyes that narrowed as he watched the kids walk past—and all the kids gave him a wide berth without even seeming to notice that they did so. He stood in an empty circle while students streamed around him in the crowded hallway.

            But none of that was what made me almost scream.

            For a moment, just as I’d turned toward him, I could have sworn that I’d seen the shadow of two huge, black, leathery wings stretched out behind him.

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About the Author

 

Margo Bond Collins is the author of a number of novels, including Waking Up Dead, Fairy, Texas, and Legally Undead (forthcoming in 2014). She lives in Texas with her husband, their daughter, and several spoiled pets. She teaches college-level English courses online, though writing fiction is her first love. She enjoys reading urban fantasy and paranormal fiction of any genre and spends most of her free time daydreaming about vampires, ghosts, zombies, werewolves, and other monsters.

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Connect with Margo

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/margobondcollins

Email: MargoBondCollins@gmail.com

Website: http://www.MargoBondCollins.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MargoBondCollin  @MargoBondCollin

Google+: https://plus.google.com/116484555448104519902

Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/vampirarchy

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/MargoBondCollins

Facebook Novel Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Waking-Up-Dead/502076076537575

Tumblr: http://vampirarchybooks.tumblr.com/

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/mbondcollins/

Manic Readers: http://www.manicreaders.com/MargoBondCollins/

Be sure to add Fairy, Texas to your Goodreads bookshelves: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19502285-fairy-texas

Marked Hearts Valentines Day Blitz

Marked Hearts are 12 YA and NA authors coming together to celebrate Valentine's Day with stories of love.  These are 12 separate stories centered around romance brought to you by some best selling authors: Brina Courtney, Sarah Ashley Jones, Magan Vernon, Dawn Pendalton, Amy Evans, Amber Garr, Morgan Black, Jo Briggs, Jessica Gibson, Tammy Blackwell, Sarah Makela and Michelle D. Argyle.  So this Valentine's Day cuddle up with amazing book boyfriends for under a dollar.

Come join the Facebook Party happening Monday February 17th!

 

Purchase on Amazon

Mallory and Luke have been joyously living out their happily ever after. With a baby on the way, they think nothing could ruin their happiness. When the baby's life is in danger, though, they've got a tough decision to make. This novella takes place after all three of the Broken Series books.

Purchase on Amazon

Layla Keyes is back in England. Much has changed in the five years since she moved to New York to pursue a modelling career - On the outside she appears independent, self-assured and enjoying running her own successful fashion label.

On the inside she is determined to take back what she lost five years ago when jealousy and misunderstandings allowed a so-called friend to manipulate and interfere in destroying her relationship with Evan Carter. Evan Carter has spent all that time pretending to not be affected by the loss of Layla from his life. A twist of fate brings the two back together as they are forced to share a few days alone. Can their love be rekindled despite the secrets they still have to confess to each other?