Review: VAGABOND by J.D. Brewer

August 9, 2015August 9, 2015 / alphabeteater

Vagabond by J.D. Brewer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Honestly, it took me awhile to get around to reading this book. I’d had it on my TBR forever and it sounded wonderful on paper, like everything I was looking for in a dystopian series. But I just could not bring myself to pick it up. I was afraid that I wouldn’t like it just because I was so burned out on the genre. So I avoided it for awhile, not wanting to go into it with a negative mind set, especially considering I was reviewing it. Turns out it was ridiculous of me to feel this way because I devoured this book in two sittings. I loved it SO MUCH. I ended up starting it around midnight, just intending to read a chapter or two and next thing I knew it was six a.m. Luckily for me it was a Sunday and I could sleep in, then finish it when I woke up.

The story is set in the distant future where society as we know it no longer exists and the world now revolves around genetics. The Genetic Engineering Guild dictates your entire life by your genetics; where you live, who you marry, whether you can have children and how many. The colonies live by a strict set of rules. Anyone who steps outside of those rules and doesn’t live in the colonies are known as vagabonds and rebels.

We first meet Niko after she’s been dumped. Her best friend/mentor/lover Xavi has ditched her for some random chick with a nice pair of legs. Niko’s heartbroken and now traveling alone for the first time since she fled the society she grew up in. Although, she doesn’t get to be alone for long as she soon bumps into new guy fresh out of the colonies and reluctantly ends up teaching him the ways of the Tracks. We weave back and forth through the past and the present learning about Niko’s life before she came became a Vagabond, the tragedy that forced her to flee, how she met and was left by Xavi, and the present where she’s learning so much about herself and the world.

This book is smart and heartbreaking. It’s so much more than just another dystopian novel. It’s more of a coming of age novel. And it’s riddled with twists and turns. Some of the twists are a little predictable but then others just blow you away. I just kind of sat there staring at the end of the book because I was shocked by a revelation at the end. I cannot wait for book two. I am so excited to see where Brewer takes the series. I will be eagerly waiting.

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I am afraid. I am afraid of so many things… by Jessica Evans #TalkFear #MentalHealthAwareness

July 14, 2015 / alphabeteater

And here is my contribution to the #TalkFear series. Remember to follow bookishblurb to hear from everybody else!

When I first saw Louise talking about this on Twitter, I thought it was a wonderful idea. A scary, terrifyingly wonderful idea. So, of course, I immediately made a joke about sending her a crazy long post about my fear of spiders that would consist of nothing other than pictures of them with me screaming LOOK AT THIS in the captions. I could easily do that, but it wouldn’t be real. I don’t want this to be a joke.

I am afraid of so many things. I’m not really sure where to start or how deep into my fears I want to go or if I’ll even be capable of talking about this in a serious way that doesn’t end in me cracking jokes every other line. Humor is the easiest way to for me to deal with my fears. It makes it easier to pretend they don’t matter. If…

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In Slightly Smaller Slices… by Louise Gornall #TalkFear #MentalHealthAwarness

July 1, 2015July 1, 2015 / alphabeteater

Remember that #TalkFear series about Mental Health Awareness I told you about last month? Well, the posts have started coming out today and I couldn’t be prouder. Isn’t this first one fabulous? There’s going to be about four posts a week going into August. Mine’s scheduled for July 14th. Louise’s blog is the place you want to be this month, so if you haven’t started following her yet you should do that. I won’t be reblogging the whole series, so you definitely want to follow her as soon as possible. Another will be put up on bookishblurb tomorrow! And as always feel free to leave comments (on the original post ideally but I will respond if they’re here) and join in and use the #TalkFear hashtag on twitter if there’s anything you want to talk about. Contact Louise if you’d like to write a piece for the series. And lastly please help us spread the word!

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Stamp Out The Stigma… #TalkFear

June 1, 2015July 1, 2015 / alphabeteater

I don’t normally reblog posts but I’ve decided to make an exception for the #TalkFear series Louise is doing. This is important. This needs to be talked about. I am so proud of Louise and everyone else joining this project. And hopefully, if I can manage to organize my thoughts properly, I will be writing a piece for it too. In the upcoming weeks, some truly wonderful people will be cracking open their minds and bearing their fears to the world. I hope that we can be kind and understanding as we bring our fears into the light. So please, read these posts, share them, and if you’re feeling up to it contact Louise and join the #TalkFear project.

Hey guys,

Shit might be about to get a bit heavy, so I’m prefacing this post with a picture of Alison, a fish I won at the fair.

Anyways… as some of you already know, I suffer from mental health issues. I’ve mostly been super secretive about it (for reasons I’ll tell you about another time), but for a while now, I’ve had some amazing support off a great friend, and lately, I’ve been feeling brave enough to talk about it — I hesitated to type that. It still feels weird/awkward/uncomfortable to call myself brave. Anyways, more than brave, I’ve started to realise how let down by people I feel. Not all people. Not even most people. But there are some, and it just so happens that this ‘some’ have the loudest fucking voices when it comes to perpetuating stigma. They hear mental illness and herd all sufferers into…

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Review: The Spotlight Series by Kristen Strassel

May 6, 2015 / alphabeteater

Secondhand Heart by Kristen Strassel

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was lucky enough to beta read this for Kristen a few months ago (now several months). I haven’t read the final version yet, so this review is based strictly on the version I read.

Daisy’s story begins on her birthday. The first birthday she’s celebrated since her husband died. And, as expected, she’s not doing so well. She’s a young widow, who’s suddenly faced with starting her life over again and she doesn’t know where to begin. All of the plans she had for the future fell apart with Jordan’s death. On top of that, she’s living with her parents and dealing with her mother’s constant judgement.

Cam is a former winner of the singing competition The Spotlight. He was well on his way to becoming the next big country star, but recently his career has started to fizzle and questions about how he actually won the competition are surfacing. He’s moved to town and opened up his own country bar, which is where the two meet.

Daisy is an amazing and complex character. I really related to what she was going through. Not just her grief, but also her insecurity and the helplessness one feels when they’re not sure where their life is going.

Cam is sexy as hell. And sweet. I don’t usually go for the country thing but damn does he make it look good! He and Daisy meet and yes, it does get pretty steamy, but it doesn’t detract from the story. They’re great together. Exactly what the other needs as they both work through grief and the unexpected turns their lives have taken. And on top of this being a really sweet, hot, wonderful story about two wounded people falling it love it also has some twists and tension and tragedy as Daisy and Cam deal with their family, friends, and Cam’s ex-wife.

4 out of 5 stars because although I really liked the story, there were some things I thought needed expanding or a little work. I won’t say what because I don’t want to give too much away. I will definitely reread this once it comes out! I can’t wait to see what changes Kristen’s made. I have total faith in her and I fully expect to love the final version even more!

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The Trouble With Bree by Kristen Strassel

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bree Farrell is hell bent on making her childrens’ lives and her own better. With a string of bad ex-boyfriends behind her, her first step is to swear off men. Second, is to enroll in online college courses. Well, she get’s the second step down, but the first runs into a little trouble when she meets the damn near irresistible Josh Maxwell.

Josh has just gotten a new job as the coordinator of a preschool for underprivileged kids. The school took a chance on him, hiring him without really any experience, so the last thing he needs is to get involved with a student’s mother. But sometimes the risk is worth it.

I loved Bree and Josh’s relationship. What I loved about this novella and their relationship was that it didn’t feel like a soap opera. Bree nor Josh are the typical leads you’d ordinarily find in romance novels. They’re real people and their relationship felt very real and organic to me. This is what a real relationship looks like in the real world. And I loved that quality to the story.

And as always with Strassel’s work, the writing flowed and the dialog was well done. Oh, and if any of you happen to be fans of her Night Songs Collection series there’s a little nod in there to the vamps in Vegas. I’m so glad she did that. I love it when an author stays in their own world and references it in other seemingly unrelated series. It’s like watching a movie/reading a book and hearing someone say the name of it.

I loved everything about The Trouble With Bree, except one thing. I wish Bree had gotten her own story. I think she had more than enough material to have warranted a full length novel. This novella just felt like an aside to Secondhand Heart. I guess all novellas that are part of a series kind of are asides, but they usually benefit from leaning on the main stories. This time I feel like it limited it. That being said, fair warning, the timeline of this novella coincides with Secondhand Heart’s timeline (the first in The Spotlight series). It definitely spoils the events in Secondhand Heart, so if you’re the type of person who likes to read a novella from a series before they decide if they want to dive into it, you’re probably not going to want to do that with this one.

4 out of 5 stars to The Trouble With Bree. Bring on the next Spotlight novel, Strassel. I’m ready.

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Too Many Reasons by Kristen Strassel

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Too Many Reasons is the second novel in The Spotlight Series. The main character, Abby, is the manager of Sinister Riot and BFFs with main singer Devon. Abby and Devon have been friends for years. They started the band together; with the band’s talent and Abby’s dedication they’re finally getting a record deal. One catch, Eli Jamison. He was one of the previous winners of The Spotlight and the record label decides yes, they’ll sign Sinister Riot but only if they take him.

This creates some tension in the band, mainly because of Eli’s interest in Abby. You see, Abby is head over heals in love with Devon and pretty much everyone knows it. Problem is, Devon doesn’t see Abby that way. At least, not until Eli comes along. Abby and Eli start dating. She becomes torn between being loyal to Eli and her love for Devon. Abby’s life and things with the band start falling apart. What’s she supposed to do?

I loved this book. Even more than Secondhand Heart, the first in the series. Kristen Strassel kept me tense. The characters are realistic and really come into their own as the book progresses.

Now this book is a sequel, so is it necessary to read Secondhand Heart before this one? No, I don’t think so. Strassel does reference the happenings of the first book late into this one and even though it is a bit of a spoiler, I don’t think it’ll ruin the book for you. Both books in the series stand alone very well. But do I recommend you read Secondhand Heart? Well yeah. Read that book. Read this book! If you want steamy rock n roll romance you won’t regret it!

View all my reviews

*Will update this post with new reviews as more Spotlight books are published.

*Secondhand Heart and Too Many Reasons reviews are for the versions I beta read. Will update (if necessary) when published versions are read.

Review: Intrepid by J.D. Brewer

March 26, 2015 / alphabeteater

Intrepid by J.D. Brewer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Actual rating 4.5 stars.

Intrepid is told from the perspectives of Texi and Liam. Texi is your average teen girl growing up in a Texas town. She’s sarcastic, funny, she’s got a couple close friends, and great relationships with her family. Then of course all hell breaks loose when someone close to her tries to murder her and she discovers her life and the people in it are anything but what she thought they were. Turns out, Texi is one of a kind. She’s an experiment no one is sure will end well. She’s thrown into the Multiverse with on a mission to save it, although not everyone wants her to or sure she can. Texi faces a steep learning curve trying to find out everything she can about the Multiverse and her own abilities in it. And it’s not easy given everyone claiming to help her is a little afraid of her. Can she get over her own fear of herself and trust her abilities?

Liam is a Watcher. He’s grown up very isolated on a boat in an empty world. He’s always known his purpose in life. It’s his job to know everything about Texi. He believes he can predict her every thought and move. Until he meets her and discovers that people are more complex than you can anticipate. And that just because you know everything about someone doesn’t mean you know them. Can he get over his own fear of Texi and himself and accept his role in saving the Multiverse?

Intrepid was written beautifully. It felt like each sentence was specifically crafted to flow wonderfully and enhance the story. When I read the synopsis for the story I wanted to read it, so I was excited when the author offered me a copy for an honest review. However when I started the story, I couldn’t really get into it. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be a slow start story or just one I wouldn’t like. But the sentences were crafted so beautifully that I carried on. And I am so glad I did because I ended up loving it! Intrepid is a funny, smart, interesting, brilliantly crafted story.

One of my favorite things about it was the detail that must have went into thinking up the Multiverse and all of the rules and positions in it. It was so detailed and so well thought out, it must have taken the author forever to plan it out. I would have been happy if this had just been a book explaining the Multiverse because I want to know everything about it now. I believe this book will turn out to be a series, so I can’t wait to see how the author continues to develop and inform us about the Multiverse in later books. I also loved Texi’s relationships with the people in her life. They felt real. They didn’t feel like just random side characters you forget when they’re not in the scene. They were real people with real relationships with Texi. We see why they matter to her and a little bit about their motives. I hope we continue to learn more about them as the story develops.

Now notice about how I said the actual rating was 4.5 stars. Why did I take that half a point off if I loved the book so much? Well, although I loved 99.99% of everything about this book there’s still that 0.01%. Even though this book was beautifully written, there were still a couple lines that I found cringe worthy. Just a few. One example was when Texi described a hug between two of the guys in her life as “man-tastic,” which I’ll admit made me laugh and cringe. It wasn’t awful; it was just a couple sentences that made me think “what?” Then, there were also a couple instances in the book where cleaned up cussing was used. I think it was only like two places but it still bugged me. Texi is a sarcastic, somewhat cynical teen, who’s life had just turned out to be a lie. Now I know not everyone has a mouth like a sailor, like me, but Texi seemed like the type who’d call out bullshit as necessary and not call it bullcrap. So, it just bugged me a little. But these issues were few and far in between and didn’t effect my love of the story, which is why that combined with the slow start I only took half a point off of five stars. Overall, the book is fantastic! I can’t wait for the sequel and I’d recommend it to anyone.

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Book Blitz: The Last Order by Angela M Caldwell

February 2, 2015February 2, 2015 / alphabeteater

Another day, another book you’re going to want to add to your TBR list. Today that book is The Last Order by Angela M Caldwell. It’s a YA book about badass lady knights! Well, I’ll let you read the description for yourself. Anyway, it comes out tomorrow, February 3, 2015! So read all about it today, buy it, enter the giveaway, and thank me later.

Can I just say how gorgeous this cover is?

Lana forms a secret order of women knights to fulfill her father’s final request: find the queen who was thought to be dead and return her to the throne.

Lana Crewe is a strong, fiercely driven seventeen year old living in a village ruled by fear. With their king and queen both dead, strife and division have taken hold. Ruthlessly attacked by an Order called Talons, Lana’s father is fatally stabbed. Before he dies, he imparts upon Lana a directive to save the statue of Saint Peter, and tells her that the queen yet lives. Now it is up to Lana to unravel the mystery of Saint Peter and bring an end to all of the war by finding the queen.

A medieval tale of hope and mystery, The Last Order is an action-packed story with one of the strongest female leads since Disney’s “Brave.” Not your average YA novel; The Last Order takes upper teenage angst and spins it on its head. You’ll be gripping this book as hard as it will be gripping you.

Add it to Goodreads!

And of course I’m going to give you an excerpt from this lovely book:

Chapter One:

LANA RUBBED HER ARMS, still shivering under layers of clothing. You should have worn your cloak, her father’s voice warned, mixing within her thoughts. After years of his lectures and training, he had become a part of her—one that she assumed would eventually go away, or at least quiet down a bit.
Under the short skirt layered over her leather pants, Lana retrieved her dagger from its custom pocket. Leaves rustled behind her and she spun around, ready for her opponent.
“One day, I will catch you off guard,” Bowen said, twisting his lips.
“You’re late,” she teased.
“What’s the wager, Lana?” he asked, holding up his sparring sword, ready to fight.
“You’ll mend my sword without payment.”
“And if I win, you’ll run double errands,” he answered. She swung her sword and lunged at him.
“Deal.”
Their swords sliced back and forth, making for an almost equal bout. Bowen stood taller than her by a few inches and weighed double. She glided around him with ease. He turned, whipping his blade around expertly. Sweat already beaded on his face.Lana’s heart pumped and her blood warmed. She jabbed her blade. Bowen swerved unsteadily, almost escaping her weapon, but her final swing landed perfectly along his ribcage. Bowen stumbled sideways and fell to the ground, his playful expression turning bitter.
Lana bowed her head. A smile began to creep along her face as she raised her eyes back up to meet his.
“Next time, I will finish you more quickly,” she tried to joke, attempting to ease her conscience. Bowen held his side and cringed. “You’ll do anything to win,” he said.
Lana offered her hand, but he refused.”I’m done,” Bowen said as he stood up and walked away from her.
“Done? What?” Lana balked. “Bowen, wait.” Lana dashed around in front of him and pushed her hand out against his chest. He stopped, seeming unsettled by her touch. His eyes turned sour and far from amused. “We’ve always been a team,” she pressed him.
“I don’t have time to play knight with you anymore,” he argued, but didn’t try to push past her.
“Oh, too good are you?” she teased again. Seeing no change, she got serious. “I suppose it’s your mother?”
“Who else is going to mend your sword and everyone else’s? Father’s ill. You know that.” She stared into his eyes, begging. “You’re the only one left who can still keep up. Who will train with me?”
“There’s more to life than fighting, Lana. You need a skill,” he said.
“I have a skill.” Defending herself was an invaluable skill that few women possessed.
“One that matters, like… I don’t know.” Bowen seemed to blush a bit.
She cut him off. “Cooking? Sewing? A skill more fit for a woman, so that your mother would approve of me?” His eyes agreed with her words and the realization sliced at Lana’s heart. She thought Bowen would stand by her, but he had stopped dreaming. She stepped out of his way. What do you say now, Father? she thought. You won, but not over your anger. She kicked the ground and gritted her teeth. Walking away, she struggled to listen over her footsteps, wishing that Bowen would chase after her and beg her to forgive him for his lapse in judgment. Instead, stillness affirmed her fear. He had deserted her.

BUY THE LAST ORDER ON AMAZON!

There’s also GIVEAWAYS!

The first one is for a $25 Amazon gift card (international).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Or you have a chance to win one of these awesome leather accessories!

Click here to find out how!

About the Author:

Angela M Caldwell is an author, photographer, and digital filmmaker. She studied video production and photography at Radford Univeristy then relocated to Los Angeles for an adventure. After seven years of city life, she moved back to Virgina. Angela loves a good story and she has a broad range of likes when it comes to reading. Give her characters that she can root for and take her on an adventure. Angela’s journey back to the written word is a story of its own with dyslexia keeping her from writing for years. But, she is a storyteller at heart. Through the years, she enjoyed expressing her stories through a variety of forms: photography, painting, music, film-making, and writing. She lives with her husband and 4 kids, who are her biggest fans. They have one dog, and two cats. Perhaps one day they will have a farm. And her dream of having a horse will be realized.

Find her on her Website, Goodreads, Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr.

Did you forget to click the buy link above? Don’t feel like scrolling back up? Let me help you out!

Buy THE LAST ORDER on Amazon!

National Readathon Day: What are you reading?

January 23, 2015January 24, 2015 / alphabeteater

Image from Penguin Random House. Click to learn more about National Readathon Day.

Now, I don’t know if you’re aware but today is National Readathon Day! Penguin Random House, Goodreads, Mashable, and the National Book Foundation teamed up to created National Readathon Day and promote reading in America. You can get involved by joining readers all over the country sitting down today between the hours of Noon-4 pm (in your own time zone). People are creating group reading parties, fundraising and you can pledge a book to read on Goodreads. You can use the hashtag #timetoread to share what you’re reading with the rest of us! I just fucking love this!

Unfortunately for me, the closest reading party is at a bookstore about an hour away, which is farther than I feel like driving. So, I will be sitting at home doing my reading in solitude or, if I’m feeling like it, at the library. Here’s a list of participating venues.

Today I’ll be reading: Mind of Winter by Laura Kasischke.

Something had followed them from Russia.

On a snowy Christmas morning, Holly Judge awakens, the fragments of a nightmare—something so important that she must write it down—floating on the edge of her consciousness.

Something had followed them from Russia!

It was thirteen years ago that she and her husband, Eric, went to Siberia to adopt the sweet, dark-haired child they had wanted so desperately. How they laughed at the nurses of Pokrovka Orphanage #2 with their garlic and superstitions, and ignored their insistent warnings. After all, their fairy princess Tatiana—Baby Tatty—was perfect.

As the snow falls, enveloping the world in its white silence, Holly senses that something is not right, and has never been right in the years since they brought their daughter home. Now Tatty is a dangerously beautiful, petulant, and often erratic teenager, and Holly feels there is something evil lurking within their house.

She and Tatiana are alone. Eric is stuck on the roads, and none of the other guests for Christmas dinner will be able to make it through the snow. With each passing hour, the blizzard rages and Tatiana’s mood darkens, her behavior becoming increasingly disturbing… until, in every mother’s worst nightmare, Holly finds she no longer recognizes her daughter.

Are you participating in National Readathon Day? If so, what are you reading? And if you’re not, what do you wish you were reading?

Release Day Blast: The Trouble With Bree by Kristen Strassel

January 19, 2015January 18, 2015 / alphabeteater

The Trouble With Bree is a new adult contemporary romance novella in The Spotlight Series. The Spotlight Series is wonderful, sexy, fun, and has a lot of heart. I adore each new book more than the last. This novella is # 1.5 so it comes right between the first two books Secondhand Heart and Too Many Reasons. And it’s out today! You can buy it now! But I’m sure first you’ll want to know a little bit more about it, so here you go:

The trouble with Bree is…

Bree Farrell is ready to turn her life around. A twenty-one-year-old mother of two, she’s not sure where to start. She could use a little help, but her string of horrible ex-boyfriends keep setting her back. First step: she’s swearing off men forever. Or at least until she gets back on her feet.

Josh Maxwell got a second chance at life, and now he wants to help kids who are in the same situation he was in. His new job as the coordinator at a preschool for underprivileged kids is the perfect place to do that.

On paper, the policy not to get involved with the families of the students makes perfect sense. But when Bree meets the new coordinator of her son’s school, she and Josh learn that some rules are made to be broken, no matter what the consequences.

Have an excerpt too:

He ran a hand through his hair. The curls didn’t go back to the exact same place. “Does it bother you? To have someone so new be in charge of Landon’s school?”

“Are people giving you a hard time because you’re young?” I asked. I did some quick math in my head, and settled on Josh being twenty-five.

“Yeah.” Josh looked a defeated. “The administrators wanted someone fresh, but then they’re not always open to new ideas. It’s a struggle.”

“This is what I think. I’ve been in charge of Landon up until now, and something tells me you’re a couple years older than me. I’m a little biased, but I like to think I’m doing all right. So if I can do it, you can totally handle him three mornings a week.”

Josh leaned back on the couch, relief washing over his face. Maybe his age did bother some other people. Whatever. People judged first and asked questions later. I stopped letting it bother me when I had to bring Landon with me to high school. “I knew I liked you,” he said.

“Did you?” A smile spread across my face.

“You were the best fifteen minutes of my day.” He nodded. “Those evaluations can be pretty stiff, but with you guys, I felt like I was talking to friends. That’s why I asked if I could see you again. To be honest with you, I shouldn’t be doing this.”

And there it was. The catch. “Why?”

“It’s against school policy to have a relationship with the students outside of school related activities. That includes their parents.”

“That makes sense.” There were so many creeps out there, in most

circumstances, I’d be one hundred percent in favor of that rule. But now I was wondering what the loophole was.

Josh had gone back to the kitchen for a second round of food, and dropped another Rangoon on my plate when he came back. “That’s actually why I didn’t get in touch with you right away. But I just moved here, and you were the first girl I couldn’t stop thinking about.”

My heart stuttered in my chest, confused. He couldn’t stop thinking about me, but he already had his doubts. He was putting a lot on the line by just being here. “I’d said on the way to the meeting that I was never going to date again.”

He raised an eyebrow. “So we’re both breaking the rules.”

Interested or really really interested? Good news! It’s only 99 cents!

Buy THE TROUBLE WITH BREE on Amazon

And of course you’ll want to add it on Goodreads as well:

THE TROUBLE WITH BREE on Goodreads

About the Author:

Kristen shares a birthday with Steven Tyler and Diana Ross. She spends each day striving to be half as fabulous as they are. She’s worn many hats, none as flattering as her cowboy hat: banker, retail manager, fledgling web designer, world’s worst cocktail waitress, panty slinger, now makeup artist and author. She loves sunshine, live music, the middle of nowhere, and finding new things to put in her house.

Find Kristen on: her Website, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Hey! Don’t forget to buy THE TROUBLE WITH BREE!

And while you’re at it check out SECONDHAND HEART AND TOO MANY REASONS!

You can also check out my review for Secondhand Heart on Goodreads. Reviews for Too Many Reasons and The Trouble With Bree to come.