Wanderlove contest!!!!

I did a mini-review of this a while back and absolutely loved it. So in honor of Wanderlove's book birthday I've decided to do a contest! Rules are simple, just leave a comment telling me what place you'd most like to visit and you're in to win a copy! Also, please let me know how to get in touch with you, cuz that makes my life easier. :)

 An abbreviated summary of Wanderlove: 18-year-old Bria Sandoval wants to be a global vagabond. In a quest for independence, she signs up for a guided tour of Central America— one filled with middle-aged tourists and fanny packs. When Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his  humanitarian sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path. Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages and hostels plagued with jungle beasties, they discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever, no matter what Rowan says. 

Contest ends March 24th.  Open anywhere Amazon or The Book Depository will ship.

Tuesday Teaser

Haven't done one of these in a long time, but I got a request from a good friend for more teasers, so here we go. This is our MC from Rum Runners describing the girl he has a crush on. Also keep in mind, the time period is 1956.

Jessica is in a word, delectable. She never wears makeup, never poofs or rats her hair. Her beauty is au natural, and no matter what those cosmetics commercials imply, let me tell you, guys really dig that. Every shmuck I know wants to date Jessica Hughes. Every one of us imagines what it would be like to run his hands over that olive skin and tangle his fingers in those dark tresses. But as far as I know, no one dates Jessica Hughes. 

Billy Reynolds.

Ronald Duvall.

Gerald Thesing.

The list is never ending.

She sets them up with a curl of her lips, then knocks them out of the sky like clay pigeons. Tommy claims she’s waiting for someone, and his wink implies that we both know who that someone is. More likely she already knows what everyone else does – that no horny seventeen-year old boy, whether he wears a letterman’s sweater or is president of the Christian Youth Society, is going to get past her father, retired war hero, General Major Roger Hughes. But Tommy can inflate my ego if he wants to – that’s what best friends are for.

Friday photo caption contest

Like to write fun captions for pictures like this? Win prizes? Then head over to Tip, Tap, Typing and enter Alina's fun contest!!

Books of February 2012

Yowza, look how short that list is!! And I can't even blame it on a short month because I know I wouldn't be able to finish another book even if I had an extra 2 days. So what have I been doing? Writing. Yes, writing. Which I suppose is a good thing. I'm about 75% done with my first draft of Rum Runners (new title!!) and hope to finish it by the end of next month. Then it will be revising and sending off to beta readers and more revising. Hopefully by summer I can start querying again. Hopefully. Until then I think my reading lists are going to suffer a bit, but I'm going to make an extra effort to post more reviews so I hope you stay tuned for those!

12. The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab* This is a very different sort of witch story, told in a simpler time and setting. Given all the contemporary-setting witch stories out there, I appreciated that change of pace. I loved the flow, the prose, and the heroine is pretty tough. I thought the romance came a little too quickly and for little reason, but overall it was a fine read.
13. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater* For those of you who've read Stiefvater's Shiver series, this is VERY different though it still has the rich description and slower pace of MS's works. I personally loved the concept of the water horses and the love interest kept me sighing, but I know that others have been just luke warm to it.
14. Miles From Ordinary by Carol Lynch Williams Okay, I read this about 3 weeks ago and looking at the title now, I can barely recall what it was about. Obviously it left a big impression. :( ..... Oh, okay, now it's coming back to me. *sigh* I really loved CLW's The Chosen One, but this story doesn't pack that same edge of your seat pow as that one did. It's basically about a girl whose mother is a bit crazy and she's left on her own to deal with it. Some of the prose is lovely, but the overall story just didn't do it for me. Still, I will probably check out more from this author.

15. Babe In Boyland by Jody Gehrman* This was such a fun read! It's about a girl who decides to dress up as a boy and enter an all boy's school so that she can write a first hand account of what boys really mean when they say things like "I'll call you". The plot was fairly predictable, but the voice really snagged me. I loved some of the awkward scenes, like when the MC describes how she felt going into a boy's bathroom and having to pretend that she was all cool with some urinal small talk. I seriously lol'd sometimes. Awesome, fun read.
16. Twin Cities Prohibition, Minnesota's Blind Pigs and Bootleggers by Elizabeth Johanneck Another book for my research that showcased many things I already knew. I appreciated learning a few new things though, like about the Federal Reserve and some early, early MN history (pre-20th century), but overall, I thought it was quite repetitive of what's already out there.  I do appreciate the author's enthusiasm for MN history though and she seems to have a pretty awesome website that I will be frequenting.
17. Crossed by Ally Condie* The sequel to Matched is very much a middle book. Our heroine shows more of her strength and we learn a bit more about the dystopian society outside the city. The ending was the biggest surprise to me, but I won't say why unless you ask. Still planning to read the last book.

18. The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson ** Wow, is this my only double star book this month? Hmm... didn't even realize that til just now. I LOVED the main character of this book. I felt like I could relate to her despite the fact that she was a princess, and I admired her strength. I LOVED the setting and the description, and I LOVED the messages about religion and  wars that trickle through. My full review is here.
19. The Weepers by Susanne Winnacker This one had a pretty huge creep factor going for it, but overall it just wasn't for me.

Review - The Girl of Fire and Thorns

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.

Elisa is the chosen one.

But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can't see how she ever will.

Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.

And he's not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people's savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.

Most of the chosen do.

I had intended to read this one slowly, but last night I found myself reading past 8 pm, past 10 pm, then I just thought, what the hell, I only have 100 pages left. Might as well finish it. And what a finish!! Rae Carlson delivered an ending that was both exhilarating and poignant. As the story is about a war, it was true to life. But I get ahead of myself.


Elisa is a character that I warmed to right away. She may have been a pampered princess, but I liked her personality. She was kind and sweet, but she also had fire and determination. Married off to a king she's never met, Elisa doesn't quite know what's expected of her. But her own expectations, of being treated like a queen, quickly vanish when her husband asks her to keep their marriage a secret. Elisa's confusion and humiliation are quick. It was so easy to imagine what this young girl was going through, even though, you know, I'm not a princess or anything. :)  Elisa let's us see thought that she's not someone to underestimate, even while she has her own doubts. As the story progresses, Elisa's strength of character grows and the book really becomes a coming of age story as well as an exciting fantasy adventure.

The secondary characters in the story were also well done, especially the character of Cosette. Aside: oh how I want to write a book with a character named Cosette!! :) Cosette comes to us first as Elisa's maid, but we soon learn there is much more to this young lady. She's also a travel guide, spy, doctor, and eventually... well, I don't want to give too many spoilers. I liked Cosette's toughness and how Elisa eventually breaks into that toughness to find a friend. Then there's Cosette's brother, Humberto who eventually becomes a love interest. Humberto seems less complex than his sister, and even somewhat more of a friend than suitor at times, but I still enjoyed him. King Alejandro - gosh how I wanted to like him. He seemed so nice at times and I don't quite blame Elisa for wanting to give him the benefit of the doubt. I can see how a sixteen year old girl, naive to the ways of the world, could find herself falling for him; I probably would too.


It's not mentioned in the summary above, but there's an element of religion in this book that is profound while at the same time being understated, if that means any sense. There are no judgments, lessons etc., but there are some very clear messages presented that rang true for me. At one point, Elisa ponders how it is that everyone has their own clear "interpretation" of the holy words, yet she, as the bearer of the Godstone, has no idea what God means for her or her people. She also questions whether some of the enemy may have at one point been "chosen" as well, thereby acknowledging that they might not be as evil as everyone thinks. She contends that even in the midst of war, when there are those who are using God's gifts to conquer and expand their wealth, that the lives of the enemy are also a great loss.  There was so much to relate to here without feeling that over-bearing push you get with some authors who are trying to sell their religion. It's not what I expected with a fantasy, but it didn't feel at all out of place either.


As far as the writing, while I wasn't swooning over sentences, the author does an excellent job with visuals. The book feels like it's set in some part of Mexico, what with the names and descriptions, and it often gave me that sense of being transported to another world. The book was long, but I can't say that I was ever bored at any point - the plot moves along at a quick pace with twists and turns and many outcomes that I really didn't expect. 

Overall, this story is a win for me and I look forward to reading more of this series.