Colleen Houck's Blog, page 11

Recreated A to Z

Here is my A to Z list of things you will see in RECREATED!

 

 

 

A–AMON, ASTEN, AHMOSE, ANUBIS, ASHLEIGH, AFRICA, ARCHEOLOGY, AMUN-RA, AFTERLIFE, ARROW

B-BENU BIRD, BRIDGE, BURN, BOON

C-CLAWS, COSMOS, COSMIC RIVER

D-DEVOURER, DREAMS, DEATH, DREAMWORLD

E-EYE OF HORUS, EGYPT, EMBRACE

F-FAIRY, FAIRY TREE, FIRE SCORPIONS, FOUNTAIN OF THE JACKALS

G-GUARDIANS, GHOSTS, GODLING, GIFT

H-HEART, HEART SCARAB, HELIOPOLIS, HIPPOPOTAMUS, HASSAN, HORUS

I-IOWA, ISIS

J-JACKALS, JUDGING, JOINING, JEWELS

K-KISS, KNIFE, KILL

L-LAKE OF FIRE, LION, LIGHT, LILY, LOST

M-MA’AT, MIRES OF DESPAIR, MATCH, MERGE

N-NEPHTHYS, NEBU, NANA, NEW YORK, NETHERWORLD

O-OSIRIS, OATH, OSCAR

P-PROTECTION, PAIN, POOL

Q-QILINBIAN, QUAKE, QUESTIONS

R-REAPERS, RUNNING, RESPONSIBILITY, REMEMBER

S-SPHINX, SECRETS, SETH, STARS, SECOND DEATH, SPEAR-KNIVES, SACRIFICE, SPRITE, SAND

T-TIA, TEMPLE, TURQUOISE FOREST

U-UNIVERSE, USURP

V-VOW, VICTORY, VINES

W-WEAPONS, WATERS OF CHAOS, WATERS OF FORGETFULNESS, WOUND, WINGS

X-EXPERIENCE, EXPLORE

Y-YEARNING, YESTERDAY

Z-ZOMBIE, ZAHRA

My 2016 Book Boyfriends

Every week I announce on Twitter who my pick is for #BookBoyfriend. Some weeks I skip since I’m not reading any romance, but love stories are something I gravitate towards, so I have gathered quite a number of Book Boyfriends by the end of the year. Here are my top ten picks, in no particular order, for you romance lovers out there.

ELIAS

from A TORCH AGAINST THE NIGHT by Saaba Tahir

Elias and Laia are running for their lives. After the events of the Fourth Trial, Martial soldiers hunt the two fugitives as they flee the city of Serra and undertake a perilous journey through the heart of the Empire.

Laia is determined to break into Kauf—the Empire’s most secure and dangerous prison—to save her brother, who is the key to the Scholars’ survival. And Elias is determined to help Laia succeed, even if it means giving up his last chance at freedom.

But dark forces, human and otherworldly, work against Laia and Elias. The pair must fight every step of the way to outsmart their enemies: the bloodthirsty Emperor Marcus, the merciless Commandant, the sadistic Warden of Kauf, and, most heartbreaking of all, Helene—Elias’s former friend and the Empire’s newest Blood Shrike.

Bound to Marcus’s will, Helene faces a torturous mission of her own—one that might destroy her: find the traitor Elias Veturius and the Scholar slave who helped him escape…and kill them both.

ROWAN

from WITCH’S PYRE by Josephine Angelini

Lily Proctor has come a long way from the weak, sickly girl she used to be. She has gained power as a witch and a leader, found her way home, chosen to face battle again, and (after losing her first love and being betrayed by her new love) she has learned more about loss and grief than she ever wanted to know.

Thrust once again into a society different from anything they have ever seen, Lily and her coven are determined to find answers―to find a new path to victory, a way to defeat the monstrous Woven without resorting to nuclear weapons or becoming a tyrannical mass murderer like her alternate self, Lillian. But sometimes winning requires sacrifices . . . and when the only clear path to victory lies at Lillian’s side, what price will Lily be willing to pay?

Internationally bestselling author Josephine Angelini takes us on another emotionally wrenching thrill ride in the stunning conclusion to her Worldwalker Trilogy.

ZEN

from UNFORGOTTEN by Jessica Brody

After a daring escape from the scientists at Diotech who created her, Seraphina believes she is finally safe from the horrors of her past. But new threats await Sera and her boyfriend, Zen, at every turn as Zen falls prey to a mysterious illness and Sera’s extraordinary abilities make it more and more difficult to stay hidden. Meanwhile, Diotech has developed a dangerous new weapon designed to apprehend her. A weapon that even Sera will be powerless to stop. Her only hope of saving Zen’s life and defeating the company that made her is a secret buried deep within her mind. A secret that Diotech will kill to protect. And it won’t stay forgotten for long.

Packed with mystery, suspense, and romance, this riveting second installment of Jessica Brody’s Unremembered trilogy delivers more heart-pounding action as loyalties are tested, love becomes a weapon, and no one’s memories are safe.

TYLER

from THE TAKING by Kimberly Derting

When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.

Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.

Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?

KHALID

from THE ROSE AND THE DAGGER by Renee Ahdieh

n a land on the brink of war, Shahrzad is forced from the arms of her beloved husband, the Caliph of Khorasan. She once thought Khalid a monster—a merciless killer of wives, responsible for immeasurable heartache and pain—but as she unraveled his secrets, she found instead an extraordinary man and a love she could not deny. Still, a curse threatens to keep Shazi and Khalid apart forever.

Now she’s reunited with her family, who have found refuge in the desert, where a deadly force is gathering against Khalid—a force set on destroying his empire and commanded by Shazi’s spurned childhood sweetheart. Trapped between loyalties to those she loves, the only thing Shazi can do is act. Using the burgeoning magic within her as a guide, she strikes out on her own to end both this terrible curse and the brewing war once and for all. But to do it, she must evade enemies of her own to stay alive.

The saga that began with The Wrath and the Dawn takes its final turn as Shahrzad risks everything to find her way back to her one true love again.

JACIN

from WINTER by Marissa Meyer

Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend–the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters? Fans will not want to miss this thrilling conclusion to Marissa Meyer’s national bestselling Lunar Chronicles series.

KOL

from THE SHADOW QUEEN by C. J. Redwine

Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.

In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart.

But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.

JACK

from THE INVENTOR’S SECRET by Andrea Cremer

Sixteen-year-old Charlotte and her fellow refugees have scraped out an existence on the edge of Britain’s industrial empire. Though they live by the skin of their teeth they have their health (at least when they can find enough food and avoid the Imperial Labor Gatherers) and each other. When a new exile with no memory of his escape from the coastal cities or even his own name seeks shelter in their camp he brings new dangers with him and secrets about the terrible future that awaits all those who have struggled has to live free of the bonds of the empire’s Machineworks.

The Inventor’s Secret is the first book of a YA steampunk series set in an alternate nineteenth-century North America where the Revolutionary War never took place and the British Empire has expanded into a global juggernaut propelled by marvelous and horrible machinery.

CARSON

from DON’T LOOK BACK by Jennifer Armentrout

Samantha is a stranger in her own life. Until the night she disappeared with her best friend, Cassie, everyone said Sam had it all – popularity, wealth, and a dream boyfriend.

Sam has resurfaced, but she has no recollection of who she was or what happened to her that night. As she tries to piece together her life from before, she realizes it’s one she no longer wants any part of. The old Sam took “mean girl” to a whole new level, and it’s clear she and Cassie were more like best enemies. Sam is pretty sure that losing her memories is like winning the lottery. She’s getting a second chance at being a better daughter, sister, and friend, and she’s falling hard for Carson Ortiz, a boy who has always looked out for her-even if the old Sam treated him like trash.

But Cassie is still missing, and the truth about what happened to her that night isn’t just buried deep inside of Sam’s memory – someone else knows, someone who wants to make sure Sam stays quiet. All Sam wants is the truth, and if she can unlock her clouded memories of that fateful night, she can finally move on. But what if not remembering is the only thing keeping Sam alive?

FOWLER

from REIGN OF SHADOWS by Sophie Jordan

Seventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok’s lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna’s survival depends on the world believing she is dead.

But that doesn’t stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized.

With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.

With lush writing and a star–crossed romance, Reign of Shadows is Sophie Jordan at her best.

There you have it! My 2016 list of swoonworthy heroes. If you’re looking for romance you should check these out. Who were your top swoonworthy heroes of 2016? Let me know in the comments below. I’m always looking for a new hero to fall for. =)

Colleen

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Colleen Houck Book Club Picks for 2017!

Hi Everyone!

I’m very excited to share with you my CHBC picks for 2017. There are some fabulous authors and books on the list so pick these up and then join me for the conversation. If you’re new to the Colleen Houck Book Club, it’s super easy to join. I host the club on Goodreads and each month you get the chance to ask authors questions. You can ask anything from what they like to eat to what they’re writing right now. You don’t have to read the book to participate and every month I choose one lucky person from the chat to win a prize. The prize includes the book or books I’ve read from that author that month as well as your pick of any of my books as well as some extra fun stuff I throw in.

You can check out the past chats on the group board with amazing authors like Beth Revis, Tera Lynn Childs, Sophie Jordan, Kimberly Derting, and many more, and you can also ask me questions there as well. Hope you can join the club this year!

Now for your 2017 sneak peek. Here are my Book Club Picks!

January

This is Our Story by Ashley Elston

No one knows what happened that morning at River Point. Five boys went hunting. Four came back. The boys won’t say who fired the shot that killed their friend; the evidence shows it could have been any one of them.

Kate Marino’s senior year internship at the District Attorney’s Office isn’t exactly glamorous—more like an excuse to leave school early that looks good on college applications. Then the DA hands her boss, Mr. Stone, the biggest case her small town of Belle Terre has ever seen. The River Point Boys are all anyone can talk about. Despite their damning toxicology reports the morning of the accident, the DA wants the boys’ case swept under the rug. He owes his political office to their powerful families.

Kate won’t let that happen. Digging up secrets without revealing her own is a dangerous line to walk; Kate has her own reasons for seeking justice for Grant. As she and Stone investigate—the ageing prosecutor relying on Kate to see and hear what he cannot—she realizes that nothing about the case—or the boys—is what it seems. Grant wasn’t who she thought he was, and neither is Stone’s prime suspect. As Kate gets dangerously close to the truth, it becomes clear that the early morning accident might not have been an accident at all—and if Kate doesn’t uncover the true killer, more than one life could be on the line…including her own.

February

I’m Not Your Manic Pixie Dream Girl

by Gretchen McNeil

Beatrice Maria Estrella Giovannini has life all figured out. She’s starting senior year at the top of her class, she’s a shoo-in for a scholarship to M.I.T., and she’s got a new boyfriend she’s crazy about. The only problem: All through high school Bea and her best friends Spencer and Gabe have been the targets of horrific bullying.

So Bea uses her math skills to come up with The Formula, a 100% mathematically-guaranteed path to social happiness in high school. Now Gabe is on his way to becoming Student Body President, and Spencer is finally getting his art noticed. But when her boyfriend dumps her for Toile, the quirky new girl at school, Bea realizes it’s time to use The Formula for herself. She’ll be reinvented as the eccentric and lovable Trixie—a quintessential manic pixie dream girl—in order to win her boyfriend back and beat new-girl Toile at her own game.

Unfortunately, being a manic pixie dream girl isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and “Trixie” is causing unexpected consequences for her friends. As The Formula begins to break down, can Bea find a way to reclaim her true identity, and fix everything she’s messed up? Or will the casualties of her manic pixie experiment go far deeper than she could possibly imagine?

March

The Scourge by Jennifer A. Nielsen

When a plague isn’t all that kills…

As a lethal plague sweeps through the land, Ani Mells is shocked when she is unexpectedly captured by the governor’s wardens and forced to submit to a test for the deadly Scourge. She is even more surprised when the test results come back positive, and she is sent to Attic Island, a former prison turned refuge—and quarantine colony—for the ill. The Scourge’s victims, Ani now among them, can only expect to live out short, painful lives there.

However, Ani quickly discovers that she doesn’t know the whole truth about the Scourge or the Colony. She’s been caught in a devious plot, and, with the help of her best friend, Weevil, Ani means to uncover just what is actually going on. But will she and Weevil survive the Scourge—and the gorvernor’s wardens—long enough to make their escape and expose the cruel plan?

April

Remants of Tomorrow by Kassy Tayler

Wren is in the last place she ever wanted to be: back inside the dome. Held as a prisoner of her father, the Master General Enforcer, she is completely cut off from the outside. After a harrowing escape attempt, and finding Levi trapped in a cell, Wren’s world is further turned upside down at would could be Pace’s ultimate betrayal. Only Pace’s whispered words keep her from losing all hope.  “Things are not always what they seem.”  Those words, along with the sight of yellow-feathered Pip keep Wren fighting for what she knows in her heart is right for everyone.  She must break the glass.

When Wren’s father realizes that his rebellious daughter and her friends are not falling into his plan of complacency, he turns them over to an even darker enemy. While Levi is certain his uncle will save them, the Quest and all their friends outside the dome seem to have disappeared. 

The outside world is a brutal place, but Wren will not be beaten. She holds strong to her belief that outside the glass there is the promise of freedom and the hope for love.  Wren must battle the forces that want to enslave her, and the foolish whims of her own heart to free her world and finally find where she belongs.  

May

The Row by J.R. Johansson

A death sentence. A family torn apart. One girl’s hunt for the truth.

Seventeen-year-old Riley Beckett is no stranger to prison. Her father is a convicted serial killer on death row who has always maintained that he was falsely accused. Riley has never missed a single visit with her father. She wholeheartedly believes that he is innocent.

Then, a month before the execution date, Riley’s world is rocked when, in an attempt to help her move on, her father secretly confesses to her that he actually did carry out the murders. He takes it back almost immediately, but she cannot forget what he’s told her. Determined to uncover the truth for her own sake, she discovers something that will forever change everything she’s believed about the family she loves.

June

The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst

Everything has a spirit: the willow tree with leaves that kiss the pond, the stream that feeds the river, the wind that exhales fresh snow . . .

But the spirits that reside within this land want to rid it of all humans. One woman stands between these malevolent spirits and the end of humankind: the queen. She alone has the magical power to prevent the spirits from destroying every man, woman, and child. But queens are still just human, and no matter how strong or good, the threat of danger always looms.

With the position so precarious, young women are chosen to train as heirs. Daleina, a seemingly quiet academy student, is under no illusions as to her claim to the throne, but simply wants to right the wrongs that have befallen the land. Ven, a disgraced champion, has spent his exile secretly fighting against the growing number of spirit attacks. Joining forces, these daring partners embark on a treacherous quest to find the source of the spirits’ restlessness — a journey that will test their courage and trust, and force them to stand against both enemies and friends to save their land . . . before it’s bathed in blood.

July

And I Darken by Kiersten White

NO ONE EXPECTS A PRINCESS TO BE BRUTAL.

And Lada Dragwyla likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival.

Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion.

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.

August

Girl in the Shadows by Gwenda Bond

Eighteen-year-old Moira Mitchell grew up in the shadows of Vegas’s stage lights while her father’s career as a magician soared. More than anything, Moira wants to be a magician too, but her father is dead set against her pursuing magic.

When an invitation to join the Cirque American mistakenly falls into Moira’s possession, she takes action. Instead of giving the highly coveted invitation to its intended recipient, Raleigh, her father’s handsome and worldly former apprentice, Moira takes off to join the Cirque. If she can perform alongside its world-famous acts, she knows she’ll be able to convince her dad that magic is her future.

But when Moira arrives, things take on an intensity she can’t control as her stage magic suddenly feels like…real magic. To further distract her, Raleigh shows up none too pleased at Moira’s presence, all while the Cirque’s cocky and intriguing knife thrower, Dez, seems to have it out for her. As tensions mount and Moira’s abilities come into question, she must decide what’s real and what’s an illusion. If she doesn’t sort it out in time, she may forever remain a girl in the shadows.

September

Ghostly Echos by William Ritter

“Tread lightly, Miss Rook,” warned Mr. Jackaby. “It would not do to push Miss Cavanaugh too far or too fast.”

Jenny Cavanaugh, the ghostly lady of 926 Augur Lane, has enlisted the investigative services of her fellow residents to solve a decade-old murder–her own. Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer, R. F. Jackaby, dive into the cold case, starting with a search for Jenny’s fiancé, who went missing the night she died. But when a new, gruesome murder closely mirrors the events of ten years prior, Abigail and Jackaby realize that Jenny’s case isn’t so cold after all.

Fantasy and folklore mix with mad science as Abigail’s race to unravel the mystery leads her across the cold cobblestones of nineteenth-century New England, down to the mythical underworld, and deep into her colleagues’ grim histories to battle the most deadly foe she has ever faced.

Ghostly Echoes, the third installment in the New York Times bestselling Jackaby series, features its much-loved quirky, courageous characters and sly humor in the scariest and most exciting volume yet.

October

Retribution Rails by Erin Bowman



A companion novel to VENGEANCE ROAD, set in 1887 Arizona and about a boy in possession of a mysterious gold coin who is forcibly recruited by a train-robbing gang interested in the piece, and about the aspiring female journalist who will either be his ticket to freedom—or a noose.



November
Resonance by Erica O’Rourke

Del risked everything to save Simon and the multiverse…but now he’s gone, lost in an alternate world with no way for her to find him.

Devastated, Del tries to resume her life at the Consort, training to be a Walker like the rest of her family. But the Free Walkers, rebels with ties to her family’s past, accuse the Consort of unthinkable violence.

The Free Walkers make Del the ultimate promise: join their fight against the Consort, and they’ll reunite her with Simon. She’s forced to choose between the boy she loves and the world she’s sworn to protect – and the fate of the multiverse hangs in the balance.

December

Partials by Dan Wells

Humanity is all but extinguished after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island. But sixteen-year-old Kira is determined to find a solution. As she tries desperately to save what is left of her race, she discovers that that the survival of both humans and Partials rests in her attempts to answer questions about the war’s origin that she never knew to ask.

Playing on our curiosity of and fascination with the complete collapse of civilization, Partials is, at its heart, a story of survival, one that explores the individual narratives and complex relationships of those left behind, both humans and Partials alike—and of the way in which the concept of what is right and wrong in this world is greatly dependent on one’s own point of view.

There you go. My 2017 Book Club Picks. Let me know if you have suggestions for 2018. I reach out to authors pretty early and will start filling in spots soon!

 

Year End Ultimate Prize Contest -All 2016 Winners Need Apply

WINNERS OF 2016

 

At the end of every year we want to celebrate YOU the fans!  Many of you have received a prize from Colleen this year either at a signing or a contest on her blog.  All “winners” need to do to enter this final contest and win the HUGE year end prize is tweet a picture of yourself with your prize to Colleen.

 

Rules:

1. You had to win a Colleen Houck prize in 2016. Mention what you won and when you won it.  (This also includes school visits, contests, and events if you received a copy of one of Colleen’s books.)

2. You have to submit a picture of yourself and your prize in the photo

3. You have to submit that photo to @ColleenHouck on Twitter using the hash tag #HouckContestWinner

You have to submit the photo by 12/31/16

Remember if you are under 18 get parental permission first.

Below is a list of what you will win in 2016

Blue Turban Hair Towel

1 oz. of Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck

Official 2016 Teen Day Tote (empty)

e.l.f. Beauty Bundle filled with a bag of beauty goodies

10 Books

 

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My Favorite Covers of 2016

I don’t always get around to reading a book when its released. So many come out during a year that I have stacks and stacks on my shelf. Though I do read a lot, I can never get to them all and my pile never seems to shrink. So while some of these books might not have been released in 2016, I did read them in 2016.

Here are my top ten picks for amazing book covers that I read this year in no particular order!

Lia has survived Venda—but so has a great evil bent on the destruction of Morrighan. And only Lia can stop it.

With war on the horizon, Lia has no choice but to assume her role as First Daughter, as soldier—as leader. While she struggles to reach Morrighan and warn them, she finds herself at cross-purposes with Rafe and suspicious of Kaden, who has hunted her down.

In this conclusion to the Remnant Chronicles trilogy, traitors must be rooted out, sacrifices must be made, and impossible odds must be overcome as the future of every kingdom hangs in the balance.

 

WHY I LOVE IT:  There is such great detail in this cover. The two armies converging in the background are amazing and the determination on the character’s face. I love the color of it. It’s like a scene in a movie you just want to dive into. It draws me in and I want to know more.

Maya is cursed. With a horoscope that promises a marriage of death and destruction, she has earned only the scorn and fear of her father’s kingdom. Content to follow more scholarly pursuits, her whole world is torn apart when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience to quell outside rebellions. Soon Maya becomes the queen of Akaran and wife of Amar. Neither roles are what she expected: As Akaran’s queen, she finds her voice and power. As Amar’s wife, she finds something else entirely: Compassion. Protection. Desire…

But Akaran has its own secrets—thousands of locked doors, gardens of glass, and a tree that bears memories instead of fruit. Soon, Maya suspects her life is in danger. Yet who, besides her husband, can she trust? With the fate of the human and Otherworldly realms hanging in the balance, Maya must unravel an ancient mystery that spans reincarnated lives to save those she loves the most…including herself.

WHY I LOVE IT: The first thing I loved about this was the obvious ties to the middle east. Since I write about that myself, I was immediately interested. I like that the lamp she’s holding illuminates her as if she is the one bringing light to the dark world around her. The border, etched in gold, is striking and I really like that the stars beneath her feet make her look like a goddess walking in the air.

For as long as she can remember, Gwendolyn Allister has never had a place to call home—all because her mother believes that monsters are hunting them. Now these delusions have brought them to London, far from the life Gwen had finally started to build for herself. The only saving grace is her best friend, Olivia, who’s coming with them for the summer.

But when Gwen and Olivia are kidnapped by shadowy creatures and taken to a world of flesh-eating sea hags and dangerous Fey, Gwen realizes her mom might have been sane all along.

The world Gwen finds herself in is called Neverland, yet it’s nothing like the stories. Here, good and evil lose their meaning and memories slip like water through her fingers. As Gwen struggles to remember where she came from and find a way home, she must choose between trusting the charming fairy-tale hero who says all the right things and the roguish young pirate who promises to keep her safe.

With time running out and her enemies closing in, Gwen is forced to face the truths she’s been hiding from all along. But will she be able to save Neverland without losing herself?

WHY I LOVE IT: The tempest feels as real as if I was caught inside. I’ve always had a thing for pirates and old ships and this one just draws me in. You can almost see the water swelling over the middle and it makes me wonder who’s drowning in this book. Who needs saving?

In a continent on the edge of war, two witches hold its fate in their hands.

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she’s a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden – lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult’s true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls’ heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

WHY I LOVE IT: I think it’s the blue magic in the air I love most. This girl looks tough and powerful. A knife isn’t good enough. She needs a sword too. The title looks like it’s made of metal. Striking and a beautiful design.

In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now.

Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.

Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home… forever.

WHY I LOVE IT: I already said I love boats. I also love deeper meaning and imagery in art. The city trapped in a bottle is a cool twist and I really like the mirror image below it where you can see the ship free of the bottle. It reminds me of the Pirates of the Caribbean movie where they had to flip the ship upside down.

Outside the palace of Versailles, it’s modern day. Inside, the people dress, eat, and act like it’s the eighteenth century—with the added bonus of technology to make court life lavish, privileged, and frivolous. The palace has every indulgence, but for one pretty young thing, it’s about to become a very beautiful prison.

When Danica witnesses an act of murder by the young king, her mother makes a cruel power play . . . blackmailing the king into making Dani his queen. When she turns eighteen, Dani will marry the most ruthless and dangerous man of the court. She has six months to escape her terrifying destiny. Six months to raise enough money to disappear into the real world beyond the palace gates.

Her ticket out? Glitter. A drug so powerful that a tiny pinch mixed into a pot of rouge or lip gloss can make the wearer hopelessly addicted. Addicted to a drug Dani can sell for more money than she ever dreamed.

But in Versailles, secrets are impossible to keep. And the most dangerous secret—falling for a drug dealer outside the palace walls—is one risk she has to take.

WHY I LOVE IT: Me and my sister (especially my sister) have a slight makeup obsession. Not only is the makeup beautiful but the hair. I also love really cool updos. The splatter of makeup on the cover and the title written in what could be really dark lipstick, to me, are symbolic of the danger and darkness of the court.

Seventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok’s lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna’s survival depends on the world believing she is dead.

But that doesn’t stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized.

With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.

With lush writing and a star–crossed romance, Reign of Shadows is Sophie Jordan at her best.

WHY I LOVE IT: This is just so, so beautiful. Even more so after I watched the making of the cover for book two in the series. Watch the youtube video on it and then tell me you don’t love it as much as I do. My favorite thing is the little mushrooms.

The Making of the RISE OF FIRE Book Cover

Have you ever wondered what it takes to make a book cover? Watch this mesmerizing time lapse video from the creation of the RISE OF FIRE cover by Sophie Jordan! Find out more about this book here: http://bit.ly/2fuxNlz

Posted by Epic Reads on Monday, November 28, 2016

Return to the darkly beautiful world of The Sin Eater’s Daughter with a sequel that will leave you awed, terrified . . . and desperate for more.

Ever since her brother Lief disappeared, Errin’s life has gone from bad to worse. Not only must she care for her sick mother, she has to scrape together rent money by selling illegal herbal cures. But none of that compares to the threat of the vengeful Sleeping Prince whom the Queen just awoke from his enchanted sleep.

When her village is evacuated as part of the war against the Sleeping Prince, Errin is left desperate and homeless. The only person she can turn to is the mysterious Silas, a young man who buys deadly poisons from Errin, but won’t reveal why he needs them. Silas promises to help her, but when he vanishes, Errin must journey across a kingdom on the brink of war to seek another way to save her mother and herself. But what she finds shatters everything she believed about her world, and with the Sleeping Prince drawing nearer, Errin must make a heartbreaking choice that could affect the whole kingdom.

WHY I LOVE IT: I love that the girl is trapped inside a bottle. There are strange things floating around in there with her and it’s creepy and fascinating. I like the chains at the bottom of the bottle too. It’s could mean it’s either a part of the locket or it’s chained to something, or both. The font on the title is epic.

Cloud Atlas meets Orphan Black in this epic dimension-bending trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray about a girl who must chase her father’s killer through multiple dimensions.

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their groundbreaking achievements. Their most astonishing invention, called the Firebird, allows users to jump into multiple universes—and promises to revolutionize science forever. But then Marguerite’s father is murdered, and the killer—her parent’s handsome, enigmatic assistant Paul— escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite refuses to let the man who destroyed her family go free. So she races after Paul through different universes, always leaping into another version of herself. But she also meets alternate versions of the people she knows—including Paul, whose life entangles with hers in increasingly familiar ways. Before long she begins to question Paul’s guilt—as well as her own heart. And soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is far more sinister than she expected.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores an amazingly intricate multi-universe where fate is unavoidable, the truth elusive, and love the greatest mystery of all.

WHY I LOVE IT: Like some of the other mirror images, you can read a lot into the book by studying both sides. The color on the bottom looks like it’s been drawn on canvas so that could indicated that the world represented there isn’t the real one. Then again the city above is black and white, like a photograph. They are different mediums that show you a world but it’s only 2-D. Which place is the real one? Or are none of them real?

Seventeen-year-old Imogen Rockford has never forgotten the last words her father said to her, before the blazing fire that consumed him, her mother, and the gardens of her family’s English country manor.

For seven years, images of her parents’ death have haunted Imogen’s dreams. In an effort to escape the past, she leaves Rockford Manor and moves to New York City with her new guardians. But some attachments prove impossible to shake—including her love for her handsome neighbor Sebastian Stanhope.

Then a life-altering letter arrives that forces Imogen to return to the manor in England, where she quickly learns that dark secrets lurk behind Rockford’s aristocratic exterior. At their center is Imogen herself—and Sebastian, the boy she never stopped loving.

Combining spine-tingling mystery, romance, and unforgettable characters, Suspicion is an action-packed thrill ride.

WHY I LOVE IT: I’ve always had a thing for labyrinths. I love the purple color of the maze and the character is blurred as if she’s running from something. Who is she running from? Is there more danger in the labyrinth than what’s behind. Can she reach the middle. We, as the reader, can see the center easily but there’s nothing inside. Also, it doesn’t look like there’s a path to the center. Is she doomed to wander?

There you have it, my top ten book covers of 2016! Check these out along with other books I’ve read this year on my Goodreads page!

Charon the grumpy Ferryman

 

Charon or Kharon is the ferryman of Hades who ferries the newly deceased souls across the rivers Styx and Acheron which divide the world of the living from the world of the dead. To pay for the passage you need a coin to pay Charon. Normally an obolus or danake was placed in or on the mouth of the dead person to pay for this passage.  If the dead could not pay the fee, or if the body is left unburied those souls were left to wonder the shores for hundred of years.

Watch how Perseus gains passage from Charon to Medusa’s Island in the 1981 movie “Clash of the Titans.”

Colleen uses the myth of Charon the Ferryman in Recreated and named the crusty old ferryman as Cherty.   Lily is desperately trying to get to Amon who is stuck wandering the underworld and needs to gain the favor of Cherty to cross over to the afterlife.  He’s grumpy and doesn’t want to bring a living human across the treacherous waters of the cosmic river.  Cherty became sympathetic to her cause and they soon boarded the boat.

 

When I read the part about Lily and Cherty my mind pictured a character called Ron Swanson from the hit TV comedy “Parks and Recreation.” He’s a grouchy man’s man who loves meat and being left alone.  He’s what I like to call an personality.  He’s hard on the outside but soft and melty on the inside.  I created a little picture with Charon with Ron Swanson’s face for fun.

 

Below is just how he looks most of the time!

 

Here’s a little clip video of Ron Swanson in the show so you can see if grouchy personality.

 

 

Remember in the Disney movie Hercules when Hades uses Charon as a taxi service to the underworld and fire blasts the spirits in the river Styx.

 

 

IN the 1st century BC the Roman poet Virgil wrote this about Charon in his rust colored skiff.

There Chairon stands, who rules the dreary coast –

A sordid god: down from his hairy chin

A length of beard descends, uncombed, unclean;

His eyes, like hollow furnaces on fire;

A girdle, foul with grease, binds his obscene attire.

 

The Greek hero Hercules used this strength and Charon’s own pole to wrestle his way onto the boat, and is often the first to greet the deceased. In the 14th Century the Divine Comedy by Dante, Charon is depicted beating reluctant sinners with his oar to board his boat.  In most depictions Charon is unclean, grumpy, and a bit aggressive.  In more recent depictions he is more like the skeletal Grim Reaper you saw in the clip from the Clash of the Titan movie at the start of this blog.

 

Either way Charon has a rough job and his countenance reflects that.  Visitors come and go like Dionysus, Odysseus, and Theseus, but there are no days off for Charon as the cruise director of those traveling to the afterlife.

 

-Shara

 

 

 

 

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November Thankful Contest Winners announced!

November Thankful Contest

What better way to start the holiday season with a focus on the things we have and less on the have nots. November is a wonderful time for reflection and pause, a time to show our gratitude for our many blessings. And, yes, we all have them despite our circumstance.

For November’s contest, we invited you to write a quick two to three paragraph essay about what you’re thankful for and to perform a random act of kindness.

For those of you who’d participated, a huge thank you!

One random participant will win a special YA book package and a runner-up will win a small personalized gift from Colleen. Both winners will also win an official signed copy of Tiger’s Curse for a friend new to the Tiger’s Curse Series!

                                The first prize winner is

                                        Aspyn Leonardo

                                   and the runner up is

                                           Brittany Gray

                                              Congrats!

~Till next time,

Linda Louise Lotti

Colleen Houck Book Club-December 2016

 

Welcome to …

If you’re just tuning in, or are new to this online book club, it’s super easy to join. I host the club on Goodreads and each month you get the chance to ask authors questions. You can ask anything from what they like to eat to what they’re writing right now. You don’t have to read the book to participate and every month I choose one lucky person from the chat to win a prize! The prize includes the book or books I’ve read from that author that month as well as your pick of any one of my books as well and some extra fun stuff I throw in! What’s the catch? There is none, this is just a great way for us authors to network and for you, the readers, to branch out and have fun! So, for our next book pick,  I’m excited to feature . . .

The Kiss of Deception

by Mary E. Pearson

A little teaser

Princess Lia is First Daughter of the House of Morrighan, a kingdom steeped in tradition, duty, and the stories of a bygone world.  She flees on her wedding day, shirking her duty, but is determined to marry for love and not to secure a political alliance.

Pursued by bounty hunters, she finds refuge in a distant village and settles into a new life, hopeful when two handsome strangers arrive.  She doesn’t know that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her.  Deception abounds and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—even as she finds herself falling in love.

Learn more about this series here, and to get your hands on your own copy, click here.

I’m very excited to check out this author and their novel!  Also, you can participate in an ongoing chat with Colleenand Mary asking just about anything you’d like on Goodreads throughout December!

Also, remember that you don’t need to read the book to participate. It’s a GREAT opportunity to get to know the authors and ask any questions you’d like!

For fun there will be a GIVEAWAY for one lucky participant! 

Happy reading everyone!

My Top 10 Reads of 2016

Those of you who follow me on Goodreads know I love reading. I met my goal early this year and somehow managed to finish 100 books by the end of October. So, if you’re looking for a few holiday gift ideas, here are the top ten books I read this year in no particular order.

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This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet’s AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it’s clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she’d never speak to again.

Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.

Why I Loved It: This series is nothing like I’ve ever seen. The format is incredible and it just pulls you in. Smart, fast-paced, gorgeous.

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A princess must find her place in a reborn world.

She flees on her wedding day.

She steals ancient documents from the Chancellor’s secret collection.

She is pursued by bounty hunters sent by her own father.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can’t abide. Like having to marry someone she’s never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

Why I Loved It: A prince in disguise, a smart, sassy heroine, and an assassin who falls for the girl. That should be enough but there’s so, so much more.

Click here to buy

Shy took the summer job to make some money. In a few months on a luxury cruise liner, he’ll rake in the tips and be able to help his mom and sister out with the bills. And how bad can it be? Bikinis, free food, maybe even a girl or two—every cruise has different passengers, after all.

But everything changes when the Big One hits. Shy’s only weeks out at sea when an earthquake more massive than ever before recorded hits California, and his life is forever changed.

The earthquake is only the first disaster. Suddenly it’s a fight to survive for those left living.

Why I Loved It: The moment the cruise ship gets hit by a tidal wave gave me chills. Also survival at sea is one of my most terrifying fears. After you read this, I promise you will think twice before booking that cruise.

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Seventeen-year-old Bo has always had delusions that he can travel through time. When he was ten, Bo claimed to have witnessed the Titanic hit an iceberg, and at fifteen, he found himself on a Civil War battlefield, horrified by the bodies surrounding him. So when his worried parents send him to a school for troubled youth, Bo assumes he knows the truth: that he’s actually attending Berkshire Academy, a school for kids who, like Bo, have “superpowers.”

At Berkshire, Bo falls in love with Sofía, a quiet girl with a tragic past and the superpower of invisibility. Soíia helps Bo open up in a way he never has before. In turn, Bo provides comfort to Sofía, who lost her mother and two sisters at a very young age.

But even the strength of their love isn’t enough to help Sofia escape her deep depression. After she commits suicide, Bo is convinced that she’s not actually dead. He believes that she’s stuck somewhere in time—that he somehow left her in the past, and that now it’s his job to save her. And as Bo becomes more and more determined to save Sofía, he must decide whether to face his demons head-on or succumb to a psychosis that will let him be with the girl he loves.

Why I Loved It: First off, I love everything Beth writes. Even so, this mental thriller was thought provoking, heart-felt, and utterly unique.

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She’s more gunpowder than girl—and the fate of the desert lies in her hands.

Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there’s nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can’t wait to escape from.

Destined to wind up “wed or dead,” Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk. When she meets Jin, a mysterious and devastatingly handsome foreigner, in a shooting contest, she figures he’s the perfect escape route. But in all her years spent dreaming of leaving home, she never imagined she’d gallop away on a mythical horse, fleeing the murderous Sultan’s army, with a fugitive who’s wanted for treason. And she’d never have predicted she’d fall in love with him… or that he’d help her unlock the powerful truth of who she really is.

Why I Loved It: This author had me from the wild west shoot off at the very beginning. I love the name of the town, the setting, and the characters. Fantastic writing. Gorgeous and richly imagined.

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In the kingdom of Lovero, nine rival Families of assassins lawfully kill people for a price. As a highly skilled member of one of these powerful clans, seventeen-year-old Lea Saldana has always trusted in the strength of her Family. Until she awakens to find them murdered and her home in flames. The Da Vias, the Saldanas’ biggest enemy, must be responsible—and Lea should have seen it coming. But her secret relationship with the Da Vias’ son, Val, has clouded her otherwise killer instinct—and given the Da Vias more reason than ever to take her Family down.

Racked with guilt and shattered over Val’s probable betrayal, Lea sets out to even the score, with her heart set on retaliation and only one thought clear in her mind: make the Da Vias pay.

Why I Loved It: This is like Romeo and Juliet but with assassins. The masks are awesome. The world is so cool. The characters are so strong they could walk off the pages.

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When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.

Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.

Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?

Why I Loved It: I’ve always been fascinated with aliens. There’s an awesome hero in this one. Also you have to read about the fireflies.

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Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.

In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart.

But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.

Why I Loved It: If, like me, you are a fan of retellings, then this is the book for you. There was so much depth in the villainess, the evil queen, that I could feel her fingernails on the back of my neck while I was reading. Also, the handsome prince can shapeshift into a dragon!

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Life in the outer realm is a lawless, dirty, hard existence, and Solara Brooks is hungry for it. Just out of the orphanage, she needs a fresh start in a place where nobody cares about the engine grease beneath her fingernails or the felony tattoos across her knuckles. She’s so desperate to reach the realm that she’s willing to indenture herself to Doran Spaulding, the rich and popular quarterback who made her life miserable all through high school, in exchange for passage aboard the spaceliner Zenith.

When a twist of fate lands them instead on the Banshee, a vessel of dubious repute, Doran learns he’s been framed on Earth for conspiracy. As he pursues a set of mysterious coordinates rumored to hold the key to clearing his name, he and Solara must get past their enmity to work together and evade those out for their arrest. Life on the Banshee may be tumultuous, but as Solara and Doran are forced to question everything they once believed about their world—and each other—the ship becomes home, and the eccentric crew family. But what Solara and Doran discover on the mysterious Planet X has the power to not only alter their lives, but the existence of everyone in the universe.

Why I Loved It: The hero is like a young Han Solo/Captain Hook. Is that a good enough reason? I think so.

Click here to buy

Chronicling the rise of the Keepers, this is the stunning prequel to Andrea Cremer’s internationally bestselling Nightshade trilogy!

Sixteen-year-old Ember Morrow is promised to a group called Conatus after one of their healers saves her mother’s life. Once she arrives, Ember finds joy in wielding swords, learning magic, and fighting the encroaching darkness loose in the world. She also finds herself falling in love with her mentor, the dashing, brooding, and powerful Barrow Hess. When the knights realize Eira, one of their leaders, is dabbling in dark magic, Ember and Barrow must choose whether to follow Eira into the nether realm or to pledge their lives to destroying her and her kind.

With action, adventure, magic, and tantalizing sensuality, this book is as fast-paced and breathtaking as the Nightshade novels.

Why I Loved It: The hero is a swoonworthy, literal knight in shining armor. The heroine is amazing. The setting is awesome and the evil they fight is wicked scary. Also, there’s a kraken.

 

There you have it, my top ten reads of 2016. These are all either the first in a series or a stand alone so you can get started right away. They’re perfect for all of you looking for a book gift for YA readers.

 

Colleen

December Contest of the Month “Favorite Quotes”

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.  This month’s contest is simple and evokes memories of times past when you went on a special journey with Colleen and her characters.

 

When I read a book sometimes there is such a memorable line that it stays etched in my mind for years to come.  Here are a few favorites of mine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This month we are looking to hear from you.  What is your favorite quote? You can choose any of Colleen’s books from either series. Include a pretty picture pasted behind the woven words and Pin it to your Pinterest page.  Then share with us the link in the comments below.

 

 

 

Here are some ideas to getting you going.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is an easy one and you can do one for each book for additional entries. 

 

 

Please have all submissions done by 12/29/2016

 

 

Books are a journey waiting to happen.  Where will you go this Christmas season?

 

 

Shara

 

PS-Did you want to know what the prize is?  I’ll give you a hint.  Oh no wait, that would be spoiling the surprise.  Rest assured it will be a heavy box!

 

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