Colleen Houck's Blog, page 15

Vietnamese

Information on my books in Vietnamese.

Tiger’s Curse

Tiger’s Quest

Tiger’s Voyage: Tentative Pub Date 2017

Tiger’s Destiny: Tentative Pub Date 2017

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Published on August 15, 2016 09:40

It’s so hot here in Arizona and my main hairstyle is a ponytail as high and I can get it to keep my long blonde hair off my neck. On the days I don’t wear a ponytail I will create a nest on top of my head and create a messy bun. These two staple hair styles get me through the hot summer and helps to sooth my itch to cut off my long tresses. I almost always chicken out and as I prepare for a haircut next week I’m starting my habitual stocking of Pinterest hairstyles.

Here are few hairstyles that are low-maintenance but still look like we lazy girls have put some effort into it.

High Rope Ponytail

High Half Bun

Beachy Waves

High Sleek Ponytail

Video Tutorials

Shara

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Published on August 14, 2016 15:22

Modern Ink Society- Featuring Kimberly Derting

FEATURING GUEST

Kimberly Derting

Inspiration for The Taking

Welcome to the twenty-eighth session of

THE MODERN INK SOCIETY!

“Imagination is the key to my lyrics. The rest is painted with a little science fiction.”

— Jimi Hendrix

Introducing Kimberly

Bio:

Kimberly Derting is the author of the award-winning THE BODY FINDER series, THE PLEDGE trilogy, and THE TAKING Trilogy.

Her books have been translated into 15 languages, and both THE BODY FINDER and THE PLEDGE were YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selections.

She lives in the Pacific Northwest, where the gloomy weather is ideal for writing anything dark and creepy. Her three beautiful (and often mouthy) children serve as an endless source of inspiration and frequently find the things they say buried in the pages of their mother’s books, or on Twitter for the world to see

Derting’s Book Series

The Pledge Trilogy

The Body Finder Series

The Taking Trilogy

A little teaser for The Taking. . .

A flash of white light . . . and then . . . nothing.

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?

Inspiration for The Taking

Writing is a weird thing. You can get your inspiration from…well, pretty much
anything…at any place and at any given time. I first wrote this letter almost three years ago; when I was trying to sum up where the inspiration for THE TAKING series came from, and why this story was so important to me. So stay with me while I go off on a tangent or two:

Dear Readers,

THE TAKING is a book I’ve probably been formulating in my head from the
moment I first walked into a theater to see Star Wars in the third grade. And yes, I was the girl who collected all the Star Wars trading cards and action figures, and even wished my hair could twist into side buns the way Princess Leia’s did.

But my love of all-things- Sci-Fi runs much deeper than that. It wasn’t just Star Wars; it was Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek, Star Blazers, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Alien, and even ET. Even now, I’m drawn to anything otherworldly.

As a teenager, I remember staring up at the stars for hours and knowing we
couldn’t possibly be alone in the universe. I imagined the societies that must exist out there, and the advanced technologies they possessed. I wondered if they were watching us, or if they’d already visited and decided we were too…uncivilized to contact. I desperately wanted them to notice me.

The idea for THE TAKING wasn’t as much about aliens as it was about
questioning what truly defines us as individuals. Is everything about who we are simply programmed into our DNA? Or do our actions and experiences play a larger role in determining who we become?

In THE TAKING, Kyra Agnew is living the life she always wanted until everything changes in an instant. As a parent, it’s hard not to imagine what it would be like to have a child go missing (under far more real and terrifying circumstances than Kyra’s disappearance), and what it would mean to be reunited with that child after a significant length of time had passed. But instead of examining it from the parents’ point of view, I tried to look at it from the flip side. What would that be like for the teen who has gone missing, to suddenly be reunited? Would it be awkward, or would everything be the same as it was before? How would they have changed? And what if the circumstances of the family they left was different—what would that mean for them?

These are just some of the questions I incorporated into THE TAKING, along
with my fascination with other worlds and alien civilizations. I may not be the girl the aliens noticed, but I finally got the chance to write about her.

I hope you enjoy Kyra’s story, and thanks for reading!

Kimberly Derting

Thanks for the great post Kimberly! I for one have read Derting’s work and LOVE the way she writes and her stories. She has a great voice and I recommend her books to all my friends!

If you’d like to learn more about her and her books, go to kimberlyderting.com.

We are also hosting a giveaway that Kimberly is so graciously providing. One lucky winner will receive an entire set of The Taking Trilogy (US only please).
Simply participate in the giveaway below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

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Published on August 10, 2016 20:45

July Contest Winner and RECREATED releases TODAY!

Oh my gosh guys, it’s here, RECREATED releases TODAY so hurry and get your copy!

Also, our last contest for the month of July was to share the Recreated book trailer for a chance to win both REAWAKENED and RECREATED signed!

Enjoy it then share it!

I hope you all enjoyed the book trailer and will pick up a copy to enjoy as I have.

And the contest winner is . . .

Congrats to Brittany Kelley!

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Published on August 02, 2016 16:28

Upcoming Events, Colleen Houck to visit Salt Lake Comic Con September 2016

Salt Lake City, Utah

What: Salt Lake Comic Con



When: Tuesday, September 1- Sunday, September 3rd


Where: Salt Palace Convention Center

There will be shopping, meet the authors/actors, panels, and dress up!

Check out the saltlakecomicon website for more information and to get tickets.

More details to come closer to the event so stay tuned!

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Published on July 28, 2016 20:04

August Book Club and July Chat Winner

A huge thanks to all who participated in the Goodreads chat during the month of July. The topic was with the featured author of the month, Renee Ahdieh.

As promised, one lucky participant is randomly chosen to win each month. What is in this month’s prize package? The winner will receive a copy of Renee’s The Rose & The Dagger as well as one of Colleen Houck’s books of their choice (Tiger’s Curse, Tiger’s Quest, Tiger’s Voyage, Tiger’s Destiny, Tiger’s Promise, or Reawakened).

And. . . the winner is

Kylie Benavides

Congrats!

Now, it’s time to announce our August featured book of the month!

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 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 . . .

Unremembered

by author Jessica Brody

A little teaser

Even more strange is that her body is miraculously unharmed and she has no memories of boarding the plane. She has no memories of her life before the crash. She has no memories period. No one knows how she survived. No one knows why she wasn’t on the passenger manifest. And no one can explain why her DNA and fingerprints can’t be found in a single database in the world.

Crippled by a world she doesn’t know, plagued by abilities she doesn’t understand, and haunted by a looming threat she can’t remember, Seraphina struggles to piece together her forgotten past and discover who she really is. But with every clue only comes more questions. And she’s running out of time to answer them.

Her only hope is a strangely alluring boy who claims to know her from before the crash. Who claims they were in love. But can she really trust him? And will he be able to protect her from the people who have been making her forget?

From popular young adult author Jessica Brody comes a compelling and suspenseful new sci-fi series, set in a world where science knows no boundaries, memories are manipulated, and true love can never be forgotten.

Learn more about this author and her books at jessicabrody.com. To get your hands on your own copy, click here.

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

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!

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Published on July 28, 2016 19:18

August Contest

August marks the end of summer with goodbyes to lazy afternoons by the pool side and beach vacations but that doesn’t mean you have to give up those precious reading moments where we can escape into the pages of a world apart from our own.

And of course for those who haven’t had summer getaways, reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are.

This month marks the exciting new release of RECREATED, the sequel to REAWAKENED! I don’t know about you but this is a very long awaited moment and to celebrate we are running a contest in honor of this release.

What’s in it for you?

One lucky winner will receive a copy of Reawakened and Recreated, a breathtaking adventure book filled with magic, love, tragedy, tension and sacrifice and that’s not all!

How does the contest work?

Simple, just enter the Rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck everyone! If you’ve already gotten your copy of RECREATED, enjoy your summer virtual getaway!

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Published on July 28, 2016 19:17

Winner of Picture Yourself Reading Contest of the Month

For those of you who are dying to get their hands on the next Colleen Houck book in her latest Egyptian series, we gave you all another chance to win an ADVANCED READERS COPY of RECREATED, the sequel to REAWAKENED, and not just one book but THREE FREE BOOKS (two surprise fun reads).

You ready to see who won?

And the winner is . . . Milena Mutter

Here are some other fun readers who participated!

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Published on July 18, 2016 12:48

Spring & Summer Makeup

Lots of Color

The Spring & Summer is the perfect time to play with new and vibrant colors you wouldn’t dream of during the frosty months of the year. With new movies like Disney’s “Alice Through the Looking Glass,” you can feel your inner makeup artist bubbling with new fun ideas. Rich colors highlight your eyes, and vibrant lip glosses and lipsticks rival even the ripest juiciest berries. Cosmetic companies create colorful pallets that illuminate our ideas.

You don’t need to be a hero to enjoy a smokey purple eye shadow. Just look at Maleficent!

Here are some great videos to get you started!

Don’t forget to “illuminate” yourself. Highlighting or strobing is the perfect way to show off your cheekbones and summer glow.

Lots of Glow Videos

Warm sunny days are here and it’s time to have fun, so grab a bright pink lipstick and take on the day!

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Published on July 14, 2016 14:24

Recreated Blog Tour

I can’t believe it, Recreated will be on your doorstep (if you pre-ordered it) or potentially in your hands if you go to the store and pick it up in person in LESS THAN 30 DAYS!

To build up the excitement, Colleen will be the featured author on several blogger websites where she will reveal 5 SNEAK PEEKS, TOP 10 Recreated Video, fun trivia, up close and personal interviews and more!

The straight facts:

The Blog Tour runs July 19 – August 11 and you won’t want to miss it!

There will be PRIZE GIVEAWAYS during the tour (5 Book Sets of the Reawakened Series). To participate, visit the blogger’s websites and enter the Rafflecopter.

Below is a list of all the tour stops including links for you to check out!