Trailer Reveal + Giveaway for Queen of Someday (A Stolen Empire) by Sherry Ficklin

I am really officially super excited to be able to share this book trailer with you guys, because I just watched it and for me, I think this book is going to be super spectacular. Or at least I am hoping that it will be, seriously it looks totally fab!

I am super excited to finally reveal the book trailer for...

Queen of Someday: A Stolen Empire Novel

Before she can become the greatest empress in history, fifteen-year-old Sophie will have to survive her social-climbing mother’s quest to put her on the throne of Russia—at any cost.

Imperial Court holds dangers like nothing Sophie has ever faced before. In the heart of St. Petersburg, surviving means navigating the political, romantic, and religious demands of the bitter Empress Elizabeth and her handsome, but sadistic nephew, Peter. Determined to save her impoverished family—and herself—Sophie vows to do whatever is necessary to thrive in her new surroundings. But an attempt on her life and an unexpected attraction threatens to derail her plans.

Alone in a new and dangerous world, learning who to trust and who to charm may mean the difference between becoming queen and being sent home in shame to marry her lecherous uncle. With traitors and murderers lurking around every corner, her very life hangs in the balance. Betrothed to one man but falling in love with another, Sophie will need to decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to become the empress she is destined to be.

What people are saying about Queen of Someday

 "Love, betrayal, adventure and hard decisions that have no "right answer"... Russian Court is an exercise in "survival of the fittest" and Queen of Someday is a beautiful start to the journey of an innocent young girl growing into one of the greatest leaders of all time." ~June Stevens, author

"I was caught hook, line and sinker with this novel about a young girl's battle in a world that seems perfect on the surface, but is sinister and twisted underneath. I think one of the reasons I loved this book so much is because there was no fantasy or paranormal element the book. I would have loved it just as much if there had been, but to see that somewhere seemingly so safe could be so deadly, without a hint of magic or witchcraft, was haunting." ~Bonfire Book Reviews

"Queen of Someday" is a guilty pleasure read. Just like CW shows and Lifetime movies, it's full of drama, scandal and betrayal. And I just couldn't look away. I found myself gasping and grinning maniacally at every turn. Sophie's schemes delighted me in a way that made me question my own sanity. I enjoyed "Queen of Someday" in the same way that one enjoys CW shows; the melodrama is strangely addictive, but I'm embarrassed to admit exactly how much I enjoyed it." ~The Nerdy Journalist reviews

And be sure to enter the giveaway!

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Can't wait to see more? Queen of Someday is available for pre-order here, and will be available everywhere October 7th 2014.

*The footage is courtesy of KK Studios, and the layout and transitions are by Courtney Knuckles and Clean Teen Publishing.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten 2014 Debuts I'm Excited For!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. Inspired by their love of lists, they decided to create the awesome meme, so everyone else could link up and share their lists off too. Each week there is a new Top Ten list posted and blogger’s can participate by creating a post on their blog with their response to the Top Ten and link up as well. I will be participating in this meme once in a while throughout the new year.

Top Ten Tuesday
Top Ten 2014 Debuts I'm Excited For!

There are TONS of new debuts that I want to read coming out this year (seriously check out all these amazingly awesome new debuts coming out!), so it was hard to narrow just ten of them, without including an HONORARY MENTION that I've 1.) already read and 2.) absolutely cannot wait for it come out and touch other readers the way it touched me!

HONORABLE MENTION BECAUSE HOT SWOON-WORTHY WALKER BOYS!
As You Turn Away (The Walker Boys #1)
Author: Molli Moran
Age Demographic: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Self-Published
Release Date: March 1, 2014

When Quinnlan Reynolds left home at 18, she escaped her small, Georgia town and her suffocating upbringing. She started a new life as a ballerina, and tasted freedom for the first time. But four years later, her first visit home turns tragic. Reeling, Quinn tries to piece her life back together again. But doing so is easier said than done when sexy Jonah Walker saunters back into her life.

Quinn shattered Jonah’s heart once, so getting involved with her isn’t something he’s sure he’s ready to do again. He became someone he didn’t recognize when he left home. He’s spent the last years burying his pain by keeping everyone in his life at arm’s length. Now he needs to get to know his family again, and finally become who he wants to be.

But neither Quinn or Jonah can stay away from each other, especially when old feelings resurface. Something is pulling them back together, and they can’t deny their chemistry for long. One Georgia summer could change both their lives forever, if they can work through their past to have a future together.

Beautifully written and full of emotion, As You Turn Away, will leave you breathless. Charmingly sweet and romantic, you'll find yourself getting wrapped up in such a gorgeous love story, self-discovery, and bravery.

You guys are so going to FALL IN LOVE with this book and THE WALKER BOYS. I cannot stop talking about how amazing this book really is and how much it has touched me in SO MANY ways that it's unreal. I can't wait until this book is finally released this year! If you're looking to break out of your comfort zone or are just looking for a really good contemporary romance to charm you, then As You Turn Away is that book that you'll want to pick up.

Prisoner of Night and Fog (Prisoner of Night and Fog #1) by Anne Blankman
Landry Park (Landry Park #1) by Bethany Hagen
Strange Sweet Song by Adi Rule
Elusion by Claudia Gabel and Cheryl Clam
The Beautiful Ashes (Broken Destiny #1) by Jeaniene Frost

I've already read Prisoner of Night and Fog for review and absolutely loved it so much, that I can't wait until the next book in the series is out. I'm also very excited to read Strange Sweet Song and Elusion, which I have an eGalley of for review and will be reading that one next month for sure! I know that Jeaniene Frost is an adult author already, but I included The Beautiful Ashes anyway, because it's her YA debut novel and it looks like it's going to be AH-MAZING!

Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy
Nearly Gone by Elle Cosimano
A Mad, Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller
Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
Far From You by Tess Sharpe

I've already read Cruel Beauty and fallen in love with it, it's such a gorgeous angsty tale of forbidden love told in a very post-modern gothic way. If Beauty and the Beast and Greek Mythology ever decided to get together and have a baby, this book would definitely be their offspring. I'll be reading an eGalley for review from Edelweiss of A Mad, Wicked Folly for the Historical Fiction challenge that my friend Marie is hosting at her blog. And, my favorite one out of these I've read so far and cannot wait to have a shining gorgeous copy of on my shelf is Far From You, because that story broke my feels in ways unimaginable. Just seriously gorgeous.

So, those are a few of the 2014 Debuts that I want to read and own this year! Got some to share with me? Link up and leave a comment down below, if you have a book to recommend to me, check out the navigation link above and fill out the form.

Cover Reveal featuring Born of Deception (Born of Illusion #2) by Terri Brown

I am so excited to be sharing the cover reveal for Terri Brown's second book in her Born of Illusion series, Born of Deception. I cannot wait for this book to come out, Born of Illusion is one of my absolute favorite books that I read this year. You may remember reading my review for it earlier on the blog. I don't have to tell you how amazing this series is, the world that Terri Brown creates is gorgeous, dark, and beguiling. It's a spiderweb of haunting illusion that will totally ensnare you from beginning to end.

How excited are you to see the cover for Born of Deception?!

Born of Deception (Born of Illusion #2)

Terri Brown

Coming in 2014

Balzer + Bray

Young Adult Historical Paranormal Romance

Budding illusionist Anna Van Housen is on top of the world: after scoring a spot on a prestigious European vaudeville tour, she has moved to London to chase her dream and to join an underground society for people like her with psychic abilities. Along with her handsome beau, Cole Archer, Anna is prepared to take the city by storm.

But when Anna arrives in London, she finds the group in turmoil. Sensitives are disappearing and, without a suspect, the group’s members are turning on one another. Could the kidnapper be someone within the society itself—or has the nefarious Dr. Boyle followed them to London?

As Cole and Anna begin to unravel the case and secrets about the society are revealed, they find themselves at odds, their plans for romance in London having vanished. Her life in danger and her relationship fizzling, can Anna find a way to track down the killer before he makes her his next victim—or will she have to pay the ultimate price for her powers?

Set in Jazz-Age London, this alluring sequel to Born of Illusion comes alive with sparkling romance, deadly intrigue, and daring magic.

How freaking exciting does that look!?

I don't know about you, but I personally LOVE anything that's set in the jazz-age and most especially London. I have so many feels for this book and I haven't even read it yet, but I know it's going to be just as phenomenal as the first book in this epic series was, maybe more. I have such a huge crush on Cole and Anna and am very excited to see their relationship progress even further. Ahh, the two of them just break my feels they're so gorgeous.

Pre-Order a copy of Born of Deception at Amazon

Terri is offering one lucky reader (US only) a signed ARC of Born of Deception. All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter below and you'll be entered to win. Good luck guys! I'm dying to get my hands on a copy of this as well. lol.

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I'm not sure who to tell you about here because I'm actually two people rolled into one. As a responsible mother of teens, I show one persona to the world. That person is driven, conservative and level headed. But the other part of me just never grew up. She is rebellious, impulsive and curious.

It's hard being both these people. They're often at odds.

The mother part of me knows I should put a cap on how many animals we take in. The teen part of me wants to save them all. We have five cats and two dogs. Who do you think is winning?

Even now. The mother part wants to make a meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and a tossed salad. The teen part wants to order a pizza, work on my website and check my Facebook.

Luckily, though my two halves don't always agree, both of us live happily in Portland, Oregon, with a husband and too many animals. And we both love to write and write and write.

Book Review: The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell

The Springsweet
by Saundra Mitchell
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
Expected Publication: April 17, 2012
Received via: ATW ARC Tours
amazon | b&n

It’s a long way from Baltimore to Oklahoma Territory. But Zora Stewart will go any distance to put the tragic events of her sixteenth summer behind her. So this city girl heads to the tiny frontier town of West Glory to help her young widowed aunt keep her homestead going.

When another Baltimorean shows up in West Glory, Zora couldn’t be more surprised. Theo de la Croix made the long trip out west hoping to court Zora, whom he has long admired from afar.
But Zora has developed an attraction to a rather less respectable fellow: Emerson Birch, a rough-mannered young “sooner” whose fertile land is coveted.

As Zora begins to suspect that there may be more than luck behind Emerson’s good land, she discovers an extraordinary, astonishing power of her own: the ability to sense water under the parched earth. When her aunt hires her out as a “springsweet” to advise other settlers where to dig their wells, Zora feels the burden of holding the key to something so essential to survival in this unforgiving land.

Even more, she finds herself longing for love the way the prairie thirsts for water. Maybe, in the wildness of the territories, Zora can finally move beyond simply surviving and start living.

* Summary taken from Goodreads.

❝My Thoughts❞

The Springsweet is beautiful blend of paranormal and historical elements that will leave readers breathless. Mitchell writes with such intense emotional fervor and lyrical prose, that readers will find the imagery alluring and entrancing. It picks up a short while after The Vespertine left off, bringing Zora and her adventures to Oklahoma to spend a season with her cousin. Michell's characters possess such strength of heart and grit that it's hard not to fall in love with them. Like The Vespertine, The Springsweet is phenomenally gripping, action packed, and filled with overwhelming emotion.

Zora has recently experienced a personal tragedy of her own and spends a great deal of the book trying to come to terms with her loss. Mitchell gives readers incredible insight into the Zora, when faced with the task of moving on and learning to live again or staying mired down in the past because that's what she secretly longs for. She does a brilliant job of painting a heart achingly beautiful portrait of grief and choosing between heart and head. Zora is filled with so much strength and courage; readers can't help but marvel at her audacity and come to love her flaws and all. She's such a bright and realistic image of strength and grace, that's incredibly interesting to get to know.

I personally loved how bold and daring Zora showed herself to be when she made her choice regarding the two men. It wasn't so much a love triangle that Mitchell was painting, but rather stoking the fires between Emerson and Zora to slow burn. It was intriguing and quite enjoyable to see Zora get as good as she gave, as far as these two were concerned. Emerson Birch is about as strong and steady as they come; a bit rough around the edges, with some flaws of his own that makes him just as loveable. He's riddled with his own past imperfections, but they seem to have this way of elevating him more, adding in more depth and layers, to make his character more likeable and sympathetic to readers.

The Springsweet is a beautifully written, fast-paced novel, filled with the dusty imagery of how Oklahoma was from a historical view point. Readers will not see the ending coming and will be genuinely surprised. It will leave them craving the next book to follow. The twist at the end is wonderfully written and brilliantly executed. Anyone who enjoys historical novels and the writing style of Anna Godbersen or Jillian Larkin is sure to enjoy The Springsweet.

{ This ARC was provided by ATW ARC Tours, in exchange for an honest review which I have provided. No money exchanged hands, I review books for fun because I love to read. I am not interested in monetary gain. Any piece of this ARC that was/wasn't quoted, is not part of the finished product and should not be perceived as such.}