Bookanista Feature: EXLUSIVE INSOMNIA Excerpt, by JR Johansson--and a GIVEAWAY!
YAY--I am SO excited for what I get to share with you guys today. INSOMNIA, by JR Johansson is one of the books I'm SUPER desperate to read, and since it doesn't come out until June 8th (*impatient sigh*), I'm SO happy to get to share an exclusive excerpt.
But before we get to that, here's a little bit about the book. First: THE AWESOMELY CREEPTASTIC COVER:
And the description from the publisher:
And these awesome blurbs:
AHHHH--HOW COOL DOES THAT SOUND?????
*glares at calendar, wishing it were June 8th*
Thank goodness I have the exclusive excerpt to tide us all over--along with a quick intro from the author. You guys ready for it???
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This excerpt is one of the lighter scenes from a few chapters in. Parker is with his best friend, Finn, Mia, and Finn’s sister, Addie. They’re setting up for a soccer team meeting on the stage in the high school auditorium. It should give you a nice taste for the characters and the way they interact with each other. Enjoy!
Finn took off his coat and threw it at to the back wall. His shirt said, Come to the Dark Side. We have cookies. I smiled as he grabbed a stack of chairs and started setting them out in a row behind mine.
“You see who just walked in?”
I turned to the stairs Finn indicated. Thor, a monster fullback from the soccer team, was standing on the top step, nodding while Jeff spoke. I’d intentionally avoided Thor’s dreams. From the way he behaved, I was pretty sure they involved cutting people into bite-sized pieces.
“Perfect.” I watched Thor’s massive shoulders as he followed Jeff across the front of the stage. “Tell me why he picked soccer again?”
Finn frowned. “I’m amazed they let him on the team, after his stunt last year.”
“No kidding.” I shook my head and grabbed another stack of chairs. “Apparently when you’re huge and fast, it doesn’t matter if you break your teammate’s leg your first time on the field.”
“Good thing Jeff volunteered to teach him the rules.” Finn pulled another chair off his stack and set it down a little harder than he intended. “He really wasn’t getting the whole non-contact-sport part.”
Thor’s baseline emotional state seemed to be pure fury. It had really bothered me at first, especially since at his monstrous 6’5”, he was six inches taller than me and built like a brick wall. But I’d gotten used to it. From his attitude and the dark pit stains on his shirt, I guessed God had given him a serious overdose in the testosterone department.
Addie walked up with Mia as Finn slammed another chair down. “Easy there. The chairs don’t work as well when you break them in half.”
Finn jerked his head toward Thor’s back. “We’re taking bets on whose leg he’ll break this year. You in?”
Addie laughed, but then crossed her arms over her chest. “You wouldn’t think it was so funny if it turned out to be you.” She shook her head and lowered her voice. “Liv Campbell was crying in the girl’s bathroom the other day—I swear I heard her say his name.”
“What do you mean?” Finn turned to face her. “Why would she be upset about Thor?”
“Maybe he scared her?” Addie shrugged. “I didn’t hear much, but she was really upset.”
“See what I mean? Girls make no sense.” Finn shook his head. “Liv is hot, but if she’s interested in Thor, she deserves a special kind of padded room.”
I saw Mia flinch, but then she laughed it off. “And you’re an expert?”
“Yes.” Finn looked at her for a second and then tilted his head to one side. “Aren’t you?”
Mia smiled. “Do either of you even talk to him, or do you just hate him because he’s bigger than you?”I leaned over to grab another stack of chairs. “Because he’s bigger than us. Besides, talking to him would require him to learn English.”
Finn stood with his legs spread wide and an exaggerated look of anger plastered on his face. “Thor no need English. Thor God of Thunder!” He beat his chest with his fists.
As if on cue, thunder rumbled outside. The walls shook and both girls laughed.
I raised my eyebrows and pulled the last chair off the stack. “Nice.”
“Thank you very much.” He bowed with a grin. “I’ll be here all week.”
Mia took a seat and I sat down beside her. Addie stood in front of us with a surprised expression, then sat down on the other side of Mia.
“So, where did you live before this?” I asked.
Mia looked at the floor for a few seconds, her face hard to read. “Somewhere else.”I laughed. “At least you didn’t lie this time.”
Finn leaned down and whispered, “She’s a foster kid, dude. Maybe she doesn’t want to talk about where she came from.”
I winced and nodded—total idiot.
Lowering my voice, I tried to sound casual. “Will you tell me why you told me your name was Megan, then?”
She pursed her lips, then they curved up. “I don’t know. Stranger danger?”
“Fair enough.” I leaned in. “But you’re sticking with Mia? Because any more names might confuse me.”
She shrugged. “For now.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AHHHHHHH--NOW I WANT TO READ IT EVEN MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And here's a little more info on the book and the author:
J.R. JOHANSSON is a young adult thriller author published with Flux & FSG/Macmillan. Her debut, INSOMNIA is coming June 2013. She has a B.S. degree in public relations and a background in marketing. She credits her abnormal psychology minor with inspiring many of her characters. When she's not writing, she loves reading, playing board games, and sitting in her hot tub. Her dream is that someday she can do all three at the same time. She has two young sons and a wonderful husband. In fact, other than her cat, Cleo, she's nearly drowning in testosterone.
Find her online:Blog ~ Twitter ~ Website ~ Tumblr ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads
Find INSOMNIA on
Amazon ~ B&N ~ BAM ~ Book Depository ~ Goodreads ~ Indiebound
Phew--you guys still with me??? I sure hope so because you wouldn't want to miss out on this AMAZING giveaway Jenn is offering--and she made it nice and easy for you guys to enter with this handy rafflecopter:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Okay, that's all for today. But for more awesome book recommendations, check out what my fellow Bookanistas are talking about:
Christine Fonseca marvels at MILA 2.0 by Debra Driza – with giveaway!
Corrine Jackson is blown away by BRUISED by Sarah SkiltonElana Johson buzzes about STUNG by Bethany WigginsStasia Ward Kehoe fawns over THE FIFTH WAVE by Rick YanceyJessica Love raves about THE RULES FOR DISAPPEARING by Ashley EltonTracy Banghart swoons for THE NAME OF THE STAR by Maureen JohnsonLenore Appelhans celebrates 17 AND GONE by Nova Ren Suma
But before we get to that, here's a little bit about the book. First: THE AWESOMELY CREEPTASTIC COVER:
And the description from the publisher:
Her eyes saved his life. Her dreams released his darkness.
After four years of sleeplessness, high school junior Parker Chipp can’t take much more. Every night, instead of sleeping, he enters the dreams of the last person he’s made eye contact with. If he doesn’t sleep soon, Parker will die.
Then he meets Mia. Her dreams, calm and beautifully uncomplicated, allow him blissful rest that’s utterly addictive. But what starts out as a chance meeting turns into an obsession; Parker’s furious desire for what he needs pushes him to extremes he never thought he’d go. And when someone begins terrorizing Mia with twisted death threats, Parker’s memory blackouts leave him doubting his own innocence.
And these awesome blurbs:
“The perfect blend of everything I love in a story. I hope a sequel comes soon!” –James Dashner, New York Times bestselling author of THE MAZE RUNNER
“Completely unputdownable. I’ve decided to nickname Johansson: Scary McScarypants, because she spooked me in all the best ways.” –Carrie Harris, author of BAD TASTE IN BOYS
“Cleverly written and dangerously dark, Insomnia will take you to the brink of insanity. A must-read for thriller and romance fans alike.”—Elana Johnson, author of POSSESSION
“A riveting story of terror and despair that will keep you up long past your bedtime.”—Jennifer Bosworth, author of STRUCK
AHHHH--HOW COOL DOES THAT SOUND?????
*glares at calendar, wishing it were June 8th*
Thank goodness I have the exclusive excerpt to tide us all over--along with a quick intro from the author. You guys ready for it???
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This excerpt is one of the lighter scenes from a few chapters in. Parker is with his best friend, Finn, Mia, and Finn’s sister, Addie. They’re setting up for a soccer team meeting on the stage in the high school auditorium. It should give you a nice taste for the characters and the way they interact with each other. Enjoy!
Finn took off his coat and threw it at to the back wall. His shirt said, Come to the Dark Side. We have cookies. I smiled as he grabbed a stack of chairs and started setting them out in a row behind mine.
“You see who just walked in?”
I turned to the stairs Finn indicated. Thor, a monster fullback from the soccer team, was standing on the top step, nodding while Jeff spoke. I’d intentionally avoided Thor’s dreams. From the way he behaved, I was pretty sure they involved cutting people into bite-sized pieces.
“Perfect.” I watched Thor’s massive shoulders as he followed Jeff across the front of the stage. “Tell me why he picked soccer again?”
Finn frowned. “I’m amazed they let him on the team, after his stunt last year.”
“No kidding.” I shook my head and grabbed another stack of chairs. “Apparently when you’re huge and fast, it doesn’t matter if you break your teammate’s leg your first time on the field.”
“Good thing Jeff volunteered to teach him the rules.” Finn pulled another chair off his stack and set it down a little harder than he intended. “He really wasn’t getting the whole non-contact-sport part.”
Thor’s baseline emotional state seemed to be pure fury. It had really bothered me at first, especially since at his monstrous 6’5”, he was six inches taller than me and built like a brick wall. But I’d gotten used to it. From his attitude and the dark pit stains on his shirt, I guessed God had given him a serious overdose in the testosterone department.
Addie walked up with Mia as Finn slammed another chair down. “Easy there. The chairs don’t work as well when you break them in half.”
Finn jerked his head toward Thor’s back. “We’re taking bets on whose leg he’ll break this year. You in?”
Addie laughed, but then crossed her arms over her chest. “You wouldn’t think it was so funny if it turned out to be you.” She shook her head and lowered her voice. “Liv Campbell was crying in the girl’s bathroom the other day—I swear I heard her say his name.”
“What do you mean?” Finn turned to face her. “Why would she be upset about Thor?”
“Maybe he scared her?” Addie shrugged. “I didn’t hear much, but she was really upset.”
“See what I mean? Girls make no sense.” Finn shook his head. “Liv is hot, but if she’s interested in Thor, she deserves a special kind of padded room.”
I saw Mia flinch, but then she laughed it off. “And you’re an expert?”
“Yes.” Finn looked at her for a second and then tilted his head to one side. “Aren’t you?”
Mia smiled. “Do either of you even talk to him, or do you just hate him because he’s bigger than you?”I leaned over to grab another stack of chairs. “Because he’s bigger than us. Besides, talking to him would require him to learn English.”
Finn stood with his legs spread wide and an exaggerated look of anger plastered on his face. “Thor no need English. Thor God of Thunder!” He beat his chest with his fists.
As if on cue, thunder rumbled outside. The walls shook and both girls laughed.
I raised my eyebrows and pulled the last chair off the stack. “Nice.”
“Thank you very much.” He bowed with a grin. “I’ll be here all week.”
Mia took a seat and I sat down beside her. Addie stood in front of us with a surprised expression, then sat down on the other side of Mia.
“So, where did you live before this?” I asked.
Mia looked at the floor for a few seconds, her face hard to read. “Somewhere else.”I laughed. “At least you didn’t lie this time.”
Finn leaned down and whispered, “She’s a foster kid, dude. Maybe she doesn’t want to talk about where she came from.”
I winced and nodded—total idiot.
Lowering my voice, I tried to sound casual. “Will you tell me why you told me your name was Megan, then?”
She pursed her lips, then they curved up. “I don’t know. Stranger danger?”
“Fair enough.” I leaned in. “But you’re sticking with Mia? Because any more names might confuse me.”
She shrugged. “For now.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AHHHHHHH--NOW I WANT TO READ IT EVEN MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And here's a little more info on the book and the author:
J.R. JOHANSSON is a young adult thriller author published with Flux & FSG/Macmillan. Her debut, INSOMNIA is coming June 2013. She has a B.S. degree in public relations and a background in marketing. She credits her abnormal psychology minor with inspiring many of her characters. When she's not writing, she loves reading, playing board games, and sitting in her hot tub. Her dream is that someday she can do all three at the same time. She has two young sons and a wonderful husband. In fact, other than her cat, Cleo, she's nearly drowning in testosterone. Find her online:Blog ~ Twitter ~ Website ~ Tumblr ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads
Find INSOMNIA on
Amazon ~ B&N ~ BAM ~ Book Depository ~ Goodreads ~ Indiebound
Phew--you guys still with me??? I sure hope so because you wouldn't want to miss out on this AMAZING giveaway Jenn is offering--and she made it nice and easy for you guys to enter with this handy rafflecopter:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Okay, that's all for today. But for more awesome book recommendations, check out what my fellow Bookanistas are talking about:
Christine Fonseca marvels at MILA 2.0 by Debra Driza – with giveaway!
Corrine Jackson is blown away by BRUISED by Sarah SkiltonElana Johson buzzes about STUNG by Bethany WigginsStasia Ward Kehoe fawns over THE FIFTH WAVE by Rick YanceyJessica Love raves about THE RULES FOR DISAPPEARING by Ashley EltonTracy Banghart swoons for THE NAME OF THE STAR by Maureen JohnsonLenore Appelhans celebrates 17 AND GONE by Nova Ren Suma
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