Katie Hamstead's Blog, page 43

Cover Reveal: Stepping Stones (The Stone Series, #1) by Kacey Vanderkarr

Stepping Stones (The Stone Series, #1)by Kacey Vanderkarr Release Date: 08/25/15Urban Fey Press
Summary from Goodreads:
Onnaleigh Moore is part of a plan—and it isn’t hers. When her brother dies in a car accident, Onna is desperate to preserve the tatters of her family. Any hope of finding normalcy vanishes when her mother runs off and her dad turns to booze to numb his pain. Onna’s grief is crippling, but the boy who showed up just when she needed him is helping her cope.

Everett’s presence is comforting, though he knows things—Onna’s name just before they met, where she lives, and sometimes he comments on thoughts she doesn’t say aloud. She pegs him for a stalker, or maybe psychic, but the truth is deadlier than she imagines. As their feelings for one another deepen, Everett confesses a horrifying secret: Onna’s brother is only the beginning of the plan, and some fates are worse than death.


About the AuthorKacey Vanderkarr is a young adult author. She dabbles in fantasy, romance, and sci-fi, complete with faeries, alternate realities, and the occasional plasma gun. She’s known to be annoyingly optimistic and listen to music at the highest decibel. When she’s not writing, she coaches winterguard and works as a sonographer. Kacey lives in Michigan, with her husband, son, and crazy cats. Along with her novels, Reflection Pond and Antithesis, Kacey's short fiction can be found in Sucker Literary Vol 3, and the upcoming Spark Vol 7, Ember: A Journal of Luminous Things, and Out of the Green: Tales from Fairyland.


Author Links:      

Cover Reveal: Forget Tomorrow by Pintip Dunn

Forget Tomorrowby Pintip DunnRelease Date: 11/03/15Entangled Teen
Summary from Goodreads:Imagine a world where your destiny has already been decided...by your future self.

It's Callie’s seventeenth birthday and, like everyone else, she's eagerly awaiting her vision―a memory sent back in time to sculpt each citizen into the person they're meant to be. A world-class swimmer. A renowned scientist.

Or in Callie's case, a criminal.

In her vision, she sees herself murdering her gifted younger sister. Before she can process what it means, Callie is arrested and placed in Limbo―a prison for those destined to break the law. With the help of her childhood crush, Logan, a boy she hasn’t spoken to in five years, she escapes the hellish prison.

But on the run from her future, as well as the government, Callie sets in motion a chain of events that she hopes will change her fate. If not, she must figure out how to protect her sister from the biggest threat of all—Callie, herself. 

Pre-Order Links:Amazon│Barnes & Noble
About the Author
When my first-grade teacher asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I replied, “An author.” Although I have pursued other interests over the years, this dream has never wavered.
I graduated from Harvard University, magna cum laude, with an A.B. in English Literature and Language. I received my J.D. at Yale Law School, where I was an editor of the YALE LAW JOURNAL. I published an article in the YALE LAW JOURNAL, entitled, “How Judges Overrule: Speech Act Theory and the Doctrine of Stare Decisis,” and received the Barry S. Kaplan Prize for best paper in Law and Literature.I am represented by literary agent Beth Miller of Writers House. I'm a 2012 Golden Heart® finalist and a 2014 double-finalist. I'm a member of Romance Writers of America, Washington Romance Writers, YARWA, and The Golden Network.
I live with my husband and children in Maryland.
Author Links:      

Cover Reveal Organized by:

Blog Tour: Vessel by Lisa T. Cresswell @chapterxchapter @peach83352 @month9books

ABOUT VESSEL:
Title: VesselPublication date: May 2015Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.Author: Lisa T. Cresswell
The sun exploded on April 18, 2112. It exploded in a Class X solar storm the likes of which humankind had never seen.
They had nineteen minutes.
Nineteen minutes until the geomagnetic wave washed over the Earth, frying every electrical device created by humans, blacking out entire continents, every satellite in their sky.
Nineteen minutes to say goodbye to the world they knew, forever, and to prepare for a new Earth, a new Sun.
Generations after solar storms have destroyed nearly all human technology on Earth and humans have reverted to a middle ages like existence, all knowledge of the remaining technology is kept hidden by a privileged few called the Reticents and books are burned as heresy.
Alana, a disfigured slave girl, and Recks, a traveling minstrel and sometimes-thief, join forces to bring knowledge and books back to the human race. But when Alana is chosen against her will to be the Vessel, the living repository for all human knowledge, she must find the strength to be what the world needs.
Goodreads
Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iBooks

ABOUT LISA T. CRESSWELL:
Lisa, like most writers, began scribbling silly notes, stories, and poems at a very young age. Born in North Carolina, the South proved fertile ground to her imagination with its beautiful white sand beaches and red earth. In fifth grade, she wrote, directed and starred in a play “The Queen of the Nile” at school, despite the fact that she is decidedly un-Egyptian looking. Perhaps that’s why she went on to become a real life archaeologist?Unexpectedly transplanted to Idaho as a teenager, Lisa learned to love the desert and the wide open skies out West. This is where her interest in cultures, both ancient and living, really took root, and she became a Great Basin archaeologist. However, the itch to write never did leave for long. Her first books became the middle grade fantasy trilogy, The Storyteller Series. Her first traditionally published work, Hush Puppy, is now available from Featherweight Press.Lisa still lives in Idaho with her family and a menagerie of furry critters that includes way too many llamas!
Connect with the Author:  Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads


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Review: Humanity by J.D. Knutson

From Goodreads:
Five gunshots were all it took to end everything Candace had ever cared about; now, falling in love with her parents’ killer might give her everything she never knew she needed.

Candace has been raped more times than she cares to remember –this is a normal lifestyle for a pretty eighteen-year-old girl surviving the expiration of the United States. When her parents are shot before her eyes, the deer that would have sustained them stolen, she knows their deaths would have come eventually – that’s simply how life is lived. This doesn’t keep her from plotting the murder of the man who shot them. As soon as she gets the chance, she opens fire on him – running out of bullets after only two shots. But Gideon’s not going to make things too easy on himself; he refuses to kill her until she’s a true threat. Paradoxically, she can’t leave his side for fear that he might disappear in her absence; she insists on following him until provided with an occasion to kill him.

Circumstances change when Candace’s opportunity is almost stolen from her; three travelers shoot Gideon. She rescues him out of the supreme aspiration that it be HER who ends his life. However, him being injured and unable to defend himself isn’t exactly what she had in mind. As a result, she finds herself getting to know him better than she had planned. What surfaces is a poignant statement on love, forgiveness, and humanity.

HUMANITY is a romantic survivalist novel for new/young adults. Topics such as rape and sexual abuse are involved, amidst lighter but also serious matters.

My Thoughts:
This book had me hooked from page one. Candace has such an amazing voice, and her struggles feel so alive and real. The anger she feels to act out and take on someone much stronger than her physically is so believable.
As the story progresses, you start to realize this man, Gideon, who killed her parents isn't a murderer. She resists seeing his good nature because she, obviously, harbors a great deal of hate for what he did to her parents.
The story unravels her conflicted feelings in a way that's completely understandable. Without revealing too much and spoiling it, she starts to understand her humanity through him.
As a fair warning, the book does talk about rape and has some violence in it. But there's nothing graphic. All "rape" isn't shown, just mentioned, and is frowned upon, especially when Gideon says he'd never do that to anyone.
I couldn't stop reading as I bonded with these characters and their unique perspectives in such a harsh world. There's so much hope, and deep, real love comes to surface.

Teaser Tuesday #5

Raided my blog archives again for these. Enjoy!

Release: The Black Oracle by Michael Cristiano

Humans, you are not alone.

"Joachim is a hunter in the jungle of a post-apocalyptic Earth. Though generations have passed since the Great Death, something has evolved in the trees beyond the giant glowing mushrooms, mutants that want to see human entrails spread along the jungle floor. And now they've taken Joachim’s wife.

To get her back, Joachim will have to give the leader of these demons something in return: immortality. A creature knows when he is going to die, after all. Plunged into a world of magic and darkness, Joachim must find the only woman who knows where the ingredients are. She is a prophetess known as the Black Oracle living in the realm of Zalm, but she’s a little preoccupied at the moment. She leads a rebellion against the ruthless High Council, and when Joachim seeks her out, he too finds himself consumed by her struggle.

In a story of betrayal, prophecy, and bloodshed, Joachim has ten days to retrieve the ingredients and return to Earth all while evading the High Council’s army, one that wants the Black Oracle and her associates killed — Joachim included."

  “The Black Oracle” is a New Adult post-apocalyptic fantasy novel, and it is available now. You can pick up an eBook copy on Amazon here or a paperback copy here . Check out the excerpt below and join the adventure today.

FIND MY REVIEW HERE!
 
 “Darcie had been sitting in the doorway when he returned to the village not yet two evenings ago. The day had been hot, and Joachim was sweaty and dirty and tired. He lowered his rucksack, and she closed the book she had been reading, one from Baruch’s Old Earth library, like all the others.
“Welcome home.”
He’d spent the last six weeks in the arms of the jungle, the cold, dark, unforgiving wilderness that never truly felt right even on the most beautiful of days. Joachim had hunted in those trees all his life, but nothing compared to Darcie. In her eyes, he was home.
 “How did the great hunters fare?” she teased. “Did you take down three alligators this time? How about an elephant? Will we have enough elephant meat to last us until next summer?”
 “Not quite,” Joachim replied.
 She stood with her hands on her waist. From the back, someone would think that she was upset if not for the expression on her face. She watched him from under her brow, her chin turned slightly downward. She smiled.
 “I missed you,” he whispered as he snuck his hands onto her hips.
 “No, you didn’t.” She smirked. “You and Ben and Trent are like children out there—like young boys. And the jungle is your little paradise.”
 “What if I told you that you are my paradise?” He kissed her neck.
 She snorted. “Oh, please. Think you can just walk in here and woo me with some flattery?”
 “I know I can.”
 Darcie’s arms snaked around him. Her lips were as intoxicating as barley sweetened in the sun, and soon, he lifted her off her feet and pressed her against the wall.
 “Joachim!” she exclaimed. “The neighbors.”
 “There’s no one watching.”
 She laughed and hit him lightly on the chest.
 “How was everything while I was gone?” Joachim asked.
 “Fine,” Darcie said. “Boring.”
 They went inside the dwelling. There was simmering jackalope stew on the stove.
 “Ophelia’s ceiling had a leak last week,” Darcie continued. “A big rainstorm pushed through here, and it ripped some of the roof off. Did you get a storm out there in the jungle too?”
 “Yes,” Joachim said. “I’m not even sure my rucksack is dried all the way through yet.”
 He dipped his finger into the stew. It tasted salty.
 “And how are you?” he asked.
 Darcie played with a lock of her dark hair and bit her bottom lip. She reminded him of the day they married. There had been no parent left to walk Darcie down the aisle, so she walked herself. The whole time she eyed him: shy yet eager. Almost childlike.
 “I’m pregnant,” she said.
 He almost dropped his hand back into the stew. A little boy, she had just called him, alluding to his exhilaration whenever he entered the jungle. And Darcie was right: he often became so energized that he did feel like a little boy—and he felt like one again now. He felt like laughing, like scooping Darcie up and twirling her around. He could feel life bursting through his chest: ravenous innocence and maddening excitement. They’d been yearning for a child for so long.
 “You are?”
 “I found out into the second week of the hunt.” She touched his face. “I skipped my cycle, and I told Jolyne. She ran a test and told me I was expecting.”
 Joachim cried. The hunter was supposed to be brave, but being brave sometimes meant having courage to show his emotions. He wept for her, smiling and laughing through the tears, and she cried too. She spent the night tight to his chest and coiled in his arms like a huntress in camouflaging paints, like a butterfly in a cocoon. Like she was protected by a shield. Joachim wished she were there for him to protect now. She hadn’t mentioned the creatures that evening, and he doubted she even knew that they had come while he was away. But now she was gone, and so he had to be too. If he waited too long, the creatures would keep her away from him forever. If she wasn’t already.”


  Michael Cristiano is a Canadian writer. His relentless obsession with writing began long before he could spell the words 'relentless obsession'.
Growing up in endless suburban sprawl, he spent most of his childhood pretending to be Harry Potter and attempting to get published by the age of thirteen.
 When he isn’t writing or reading, he can be found planning his next backpacking trip around the world. He is a recent graduate from the University of Toronto with studies in Foreign Language and Linguistics. Previously, he attended a Regional Arts high school where he majored in drama. He is fond of all things dramatic. 
Michael currently resides in the Greater Toronto Area, and he is using his years as a twenty-something to establish what he hopes will be a long career in writing.
He works in editing and acquisitions for Curiosity Quills Press, and his freelance work has appeared on websites such as Nexopia, FluentU, and BlushPost.
The Black Oracle, his debut novel, is out now. Like him on Facebook. Follow him on Twitter.

Cover Reveal: Decree of Hope by Beth Fred

Decree of Hopeby Beth Fred Release Date: 09/01/14
Summary from Goodreads:
When insecure eighteen-year-old Kailee Hill gets caught tagging Iraq war refugee, Abrahem Yohanna's garage, she's not expecting him to act as her designated driver, hold her hair back when she pukes, or offer to be a shoulder to cry on. But she's failing chemistry and her life is falling apart, so she uses the number Abe leaves her and finds herself with a new tutor.

The two quickly find themselves falling hard for each other. Kailee attacks a local grunt when he calls Abe a "sand nigger" and fights with her veteran brother to be with him. When she learns Abe hasn't told his family about her, she's heartbroken and the couple risks losing everything they've worked to build. To make matters worse, Kailee's previous acts make her the prime suspect in a serious crime. With Kailee behind bars and doubting his feelings for her, Abe must find a way to rescue the girl he loves and win back her affection . And to do that he’ll have to catch a crook… 





About the Author
I'm a full time ELF keeper and part time writer/blogger/writing instructor. I'm represented by Kathleen Rushall of Marsal Lyons Literary Agency. I like my tea hot, my romance sweet, and my guys chivalrous. Real men hold open doors, refer to you as ma'am, make promises they keep, and aren't afraid to profess their undying love. It's not breakfast if there aren't carbs(at least, not in the South). Fajitas, carnitas, and churros are just few of my favorite things. Bet you can't guess where I'm from ;)
Author Links:      

Books for Review I DNF

Fangirl by Ken Baker

I won this paperback through a comp, and couldn't read more than the first few chapters. Riddled with cliches , and "teen speak" that I never hear teens actually use other than in texting, it feels like the author tried too hard to make a popular fan fic.












Indulging In Irelyn by D.L. Raver
 I could not like the main character of this, Zane. He felt like such a pig, no matter what happened. Also, since I live in the Phoenix area, which it is set, all the references are ever so slightly off, like the author used google maps rather than a local knowledge.

Jamestown by Matthew Sharpe I wanted so much to like this one. Writing was solid, premise great, but I couldn't get past the graphic gore. I couldn't read anymore without feeling disgusted. It was too distracting from the plot line.














 Redemption by C.J. Barry
Plot was slow ad seemed to go nowhere fast. Gave up after the fifth chapter.
The Letting by Catherine Goldstein

Another one I wanted so much to like, but couldn't. Way too much internal dialogue made it repetitive and slow paced. A ton of background information dumping as well. The first three chapter should have been edited down to one.

Review: The Black Oracle by Michael Cristiano

From Goodreads:
On a post-apocalyptic Earth, humans are not alone.

Joachim is a hunter. Though generations have passed since the Great Death, something has evolved in the trees beyond the giant glowing mushrooms, mutants that want to see human entrails spread along the jungle floor.

And now they've taken Joachim’s wife.

To get her back, Joachim will have to give the leader of these demons something in return: immortality. A creature knows when he is going to die, after all. Plunged into a world of magic and darkness, Joachim must find the only woman who knows where the ingredients are. She is a prophetess known as the Black Oracle living in the realm of Zalm, but she’s a little preoccupied at the moment. She leads a rebellion against the ruthless High Council, and when Joachim seeks her out, he too finds himself consumed by her struggle.

In a story of betrayal, prophecy, and bloodshed, Joachim has ten days to retrieve the ingredients and return to Earth all while evading the High Council’s army, one that wants the Black Oracle and her associates killed — Joachim included.

My Thoughts:
***Note: I was the acquiring editor for this book***

The Black Oracle follows Joachim, a hunter from the jungles of a post-apocalyptic Earth, as he fights to save his pregnant wife from human eating demons. He must journey into a parallel world Called Zalm to find the ingredients for a potion, one that acts as a ransom to get her back. Joachim must traverse Zalm and return home before the end of the tenth day or his wife and unborn child will be killed.

While he is gone, we simultaneously watch young Rae as he fights to remove the demons from power and free the village from their terror.

This book is action packed and intense. There were parts I was horrified, but I honestly could not put it down. I found myself rooting for Joachim and Rae the whole way, even when they seemed destined to lose. I ached at their losses, and wanted to jump up at down when they succeeded.

The author handles the gore tactfully, while still getting the point across of how nasty these demons are. It's definitely for mature audiences.

All up, an intense page turner. Although not for those who love fluffy bunnies, if you want something that pushes the limits of your imagination and takes you to a unique world with strong characters you will love, this is the perfect book for you.

Dark Quest Editor: Meriah Crawford

Meriah Crawford is a writer, an assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, and a private investigator. She has also been a horseback riding instructor, library page, programmer, prepress tech, graphic designer, technical editor, software tester, systems analyst, program manager, and has even been paid to put M&Ms into little baggies for bingo.
Meriah’s published writing includes short stories, a variety of non-fiction work, and a poem about semi-colons. A few of her most recent publications include a story about a promise kept; a story about an artist, set in 17th century Germany; and the real explanation for the Virginia Earthquake. For more information, visit www.mlcrawford.com.


1.      Tell us how you came to work with Dark Quest.I’m not employed by DQ. My co-editor Day al Mohamed and I developed an anthology: Trust and Treachery: Tales of Power and Intrigue. Once the book was complete, we pitched it to DQ and they bought it. This process was great for us for a number of reasons. It was our first anthology project, so getting a publisher in advance wasn’t a practical option. And we’d met the publisher Neal Levin and several others from DQ at conventions, so we knew them and liked them, and we knew we could work together.
2.      What does your job entail? Day and I came up with a concept, found cover art by a fantastic Turkish artist, and I designed the cover. We put together a website and sent out a call for stories. And from there, it was “simply” a matter of reading 440+ stories and selecting the very best. Once we had our stories and signed contracts, I went through a detailed editing process with each author. Once that was done, we spoke with Neal and then sent him our manuscript. He made us an offer veryquickly, and we had a deal. Day also wrote a foreword for the book, and I wrote an afterword, in the form of a comic. And of course, we’ve both been involved in the promotion process.
3.      What do you enjoy most about being an editor? I’m a slow editor, but I think I’m great at it. Helping the authors to refine their stories and make them better--usually in small ways, but sometimes in large ways--is quite gratifying. Often, it’s the details that really make a story great. Not every anthology editor does much editing, but I have a ton of experience at editing and working with people on their writing, and it’s a process I’m quite comfortable with. This approach also allowed us to accept some stories that had real issues, but that we knew would be fantastic with a bit of work.
4.      What have your experiences been like working with the authors?Nearly all of them were so fantastic. They’ve been enthusiastic about the project, appreciative of our efforts, and quick to respond. Not all of them, of course—but what we ended up with is a book I’m enormously proud of!
5.      What is the hardest part of being an editor?The editing. J Sometimes, authors are reluctant to change something that doesn’t make sense or just doesn’t work. I understand that, because I’ve been that person myself—though I usually don’t argue with editors. As a writer as well as an editor, I know how important it is to maintain a positive working relationship with the editor, and to take a step back from the story and really think about what’s being proposed in the way of changes. Editors aren’t always right, of course, but if you’re going to argue, it has to happen in a very calm, diplomatic way, with a carefully-thought-out and non-defensive explanation.
6.      And what is the best part?
The end result. In this case, we have a book I’m extremely proud of. It looks beautiful, and the stories inside are outstanding. And we’ve had enough positive reviews and recognition of the quality of the work that I know we built something really special.
7.      Last question; If you could bring any book/movie/TV show to life, what would it be and why? I am such a big Star Trek fan—I would really love to have a new series on television. And none of that prequel or new timeline nonsense. They ought to base something on Starfleet Command and Starfleet Academy. I have a whole plan in mind—all they have to do is call me. My ideas are so brilliant, I can essentially guarantee its success. In the meantime, I’m pretty excited about Star Trek Axanar, which I backed on Kickstarter and follow on Facebook. Very cool project!