Remembrance by Michelle Madow - Sims Book Trailer

So I entered a contest on Michelle Madows blog.. to make a book trailer. Since I do these on a regular basis, I figured... what the heck! I love this cover, so I thought it would be fun to put together. 


I want to thank Andrea from the bottom of my little heart... for sending me all the details I needed to make this.. since I haven't actually read the book yet. 


I had planned to sing the song.. but I really need to read up on my sound editing software before I take that kind of task on. Anyway, I stuck with the song I wanted.. This book was inspired by Taylor Swifts video Love Story. I didn't want to use that same song though... and I was kind of stumped, but then I remembered Andrea's review said this book was enchanting.. So I went with Taylor Swift's, Enchanted. 


For those of you who have read the book, I hope my trailer does it justice. Regardless of whether I win this contest.. it was still a blast to make... and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out! And let me tell you, that's great because I spent hours upon hours working on this one. Hope you all enjoy it! 

[Review] Trial by Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, BOOK 2 in Raised by Wolves series

If you haven't read Raised by Wolves (book 1) yet.. SPOILERS AHEAD!

Goodreads Description

There can only be one alpha. 
 
Bryn is finally settling into her position as alpha of the Cedar Ridge Pack—or at least, her own version of what it means to be alpha when you’re a human leading a band of werewolves. Then she finds a teenage boy bleeding on her front porch. Before collapsing, he tells her his name is Lucas, he’s a Were, and Bryn’s protection is his only hope.
 
But Lucas isn’t part of Bryn’s pack, and she has no right to claim another alpha’s Were.  With threats—old and new—looming, and danger closing in from all sides, Bryn will have to accept what her guardian Callum knew all along. To be alpha, she will have to give in to her own animal instincts and become less human. And, she’s going to have to do it alone.
 
Bryn faces both the costs, and the rewards, of love and loyalty, in this thrilling sequel to Raised by Wolves

First, I want to put out there, that this is my favorite Wolf/Were/Rabid Doggy/Whatever you want to wall them, Series. I loved Raised by Wolves. I loved how original it was, and Bryn is just one of those characters you connect with immediately.

I will admit, I was a little scared to read Trial By Fire. Book one left such a mark on me, I was afraid it’s sequel would let me down. It more than exceeded my expectations.

It picks up pretty close to where we are left off. Bryn is now the Alpha, and that was a very interesting dynamic to watch. I enjoyed getting to know some of the other characters a little more. Lake, holy crap she’s kick ass and Devin is such great comic relief. I love Chase.. he has this silent protective way about him that I adore. What I love most though, is every ones connection to each other and to Bryn. Their close friendships really shine through.

Clearly, this is me carrying Callums Wolf babies.

Now Callum, don’t even get me started on him. Even though he stays at a distance throughout TBF, his presence in the story is still strong. I still don’t know what to make of this man/wolf candy. Though I think he’s mainly a fatherly figure for Bryn, I want to call him daddy in a whole different way.. if you catch my drift.. I’m done having kids.. but I will spit out wolf babies for him any day. This book isn’t all about me wanting to jump Callum though, in fact it doesn’t have anything at all to do with that.

Cedar Ridge doesn’t stay quiet for long. Shay (Devons douche bag brother) comes along and starts a whole boat load of trouble. There are new characters introduced.. really interesting.. and how they tie into the past… I don't want to say to much about them... but it's awesome. 

I couldn't put this one down... If you have been putting off book two like I have.. it’s time to move it up the reading pile because it’s fantastic..

IMM #6

IMM is hosted by the Story Siren. :)


This week I bought 4 books. They were all on sale at a discount store for $3.99. Just because they had a little marker on them. I'm assuming the somehow fell down the line from Borders going under, but a little mark doesn't bother me!


Shift by Jeri Smith-Ready
Moonglass by Jessi Kirby
We'll Always have Summer by Jenny Han
Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma


Pardon my obnoxious appearance. lol. I am super tired to, so I probably should have filmed this on a night I didn't clean house and run errands all day. 

TGIF @ GReads [2]

made by the lovely Ginger, obviously. :)

 Today's Question!


Giving Thanks: Which books are you most thankful for receiving from other bloggers, friends, family members, or publishers?


There are so many people I'm thankful for with books. First the VC Andrews books. I have my mom and Grandmother to thank for those. What ones my mom didn't own, my gram did, so I devoured them.. They are the books that originally got me started reading when I was young. 


My friend Suzanne. I met her through work. She is a Teller at the bank my company does our deposits at. One day many years ago, we got to talking books.. She has pushed so many books onto me..Harry Potter & the Hunger Games.. I wasn't going to read that.. but she forced me. lol. So glad she did. I pushed the Twilight books onto her, and she loved them. She also lets me borrow her library books, which is awesome b/c I don't have time to get to the library ever. She is such a great book friend, and I'm forever thankful to have her in my life. 


I want to thank all of you bloggers out there! My husband probably wants to shoot you all, but I thank you! lol. Since I started blogging my to read list has grown like crazy. A couple bloggers I have to thank.. Andrea @ The Bookish Babes . I saw her review of Blood Bound, and said how much I wanted to read it. She says, send me your address and I'll mail it to you.. That to me is amazing. She didn't know me.. we have since talked a lot more, but to trust me, a new blogger, with an autographed book! Crazy.. but I love her, and I love the book. I am now going to be reading a whole lot more Rachel Vincent. 


Another Blogger, Tara from fiction folio . Now I had really never spoke to her.. I saw her tweet one day about doing a little arc tour for Shatter Me.. I had been dying to get my hands on that book so I cold make a trailer. She didn't hesitate to let me do the tour. I have come across a few blogs that require you be a blogger for a certain amount of time before being on the tour. And my follower count grows slowly, but it's not large by any means. So I was very grateful that Tara over looked all that and sent me the arc. Which was amazing by the way.


I don't get books from Publishers yet.. but I thank them for putting the books out there! Heck I thank everyone. Ginger for the great Contemporary Recommendations yesterday! My friend Jackie for making me buy Anna Dressed In Blood. Keep shoving books in my face everyone! I will love you all forever. 


Ahhhh, bloggers spell check isn't working.. so sorry for any mistakes. No time to copy paste and check elsewhere.. or I'll be late for work! :)

[Review] Blood Red Road by Moira Young

GOODREADS DESCRIPTION

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.

I never know how to start a review, so I'm just going to dive in. I really liked this book but there's something about it you all must know, in case you hadn't already heard. The writing style is tough to get past. I didn't have a problem, but I know others who have.. My friend Suzanne had trouble at first.. so she listened to a bit of the Audio, then went and read the rest.. She said that is helped her hear Saba's voice.

After I got a couple chapters in, her voice came naturally to me. I started to see the style for what it was meant to be, character.. It was different, and I felt it brought a certain feel to this book that wouldn't have been there if it was written plainly.

See!!! Me rolling in the mud !!

I want to focus a little on the cover. If you have read my reviews, or watched my trailers and IMM's, you know I have a little thing for Covers... by saying little thing, I really mean a sick obsession. There is something about a pretty cover that just does it for me. This cover is so perfect. From the raised textured lettering in the Title, to Saba walking across the desert landscape with sand blowing in her face.. but everyone, these things are not the best part of the cover! Nope! There are tiny little details. Key details from the story in this cover. Details that unless you read the book, you would never know. These are the little things in life that excite me! I'm like a little pig rolling around in mud right now, just talking to you about it!!!!!

Anyway, back to the book. Saba is a wonderful heroine. She is strong, she is Beautiful, She is sometimes a bitch! For real.. I wanted to slap her in the face in some scenes. She's not perfect, far from it. But I cared for her. I wanted to see her make it through all she was put through unharmed. The world building was great. I'm still intrigued. I want to know more about what made it like it is.. I won't elaborate on that. I'll leave you to be intrigued yourself.

I have to share one little quote with you, that had me cracking up.

“Holy crap in a cup!”

Yup, that's it.. It doesn't take much to amuse me. Who could not love a book with a quote like that? I guess some people could, but it sure as heck won me over.

I am looking forward to the next book in this series. I believe its supposed to be a trilogy. There is a lot more about Saba's Destiny that I don't know yet, and I can't wait to dive into her world again. 

IMM #5

In my mailbox is hosted by the The Story Siren








I haven't done one in a while, so of course it's way long. Here is a list of what I got if you want to skip the vlog


Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon + signed Swag
The Gods Wife by Lynn Voedisch
Wither by Lauren DeStefano ----- To give away at a later date
Nocturne by Christine Johnson - personally autographed! *jumps around squeeling*
The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa --- Oh Ash how I have missed you. <3


I think I got everything.. Oh, and soo sorry for the cleavage. I didn't realize my shirt was so low cut until I re-watched the video. I really wanted to re do it but I just don't have that kinda time. Ha! and I look like a zombie in the still!

[Review + Sims Trailer] Blood Bound by Rachel Vincent

GOODREADS DESCRIPTION

By blood, by word, by magic… 
Most can't touch the power. But Liv Warren is special— a paranormal tracker who follows the scent of blood. 
Liv makes her own rules, and the most important one is trust no one. 
But when her friend's daughter goes missing, Liv has no choice but to find the girl. Thanks to a childhood oath, Liv can't rest until the child is home safe. But that means trusting Cam Caballero, the former lover forbidden to her. 
Bound by oath and lost in desire for a man she cannot have, Liv is racing to save the child from a dark criminal underworld where secrets, lies, trauma and danger lurk around every corner…every touch…every kiss. 
And more blood will be spilled before it's over…

To Start out, I want to thank Andrea so much for lending me this book. Blood Bound is the first I have ever read from Rachel Vincent. I am sometimes a little reluctant to purchase a book if I haven't read anything from the Author yet. I can assure you that after reading this, I will be buying all of Vincent's material in due time. I'd purchase it all right this instant, but alas... I'm not rich.

I first heard of Rachel Vincent's work when I started reading YA. Her Soul Screamers series is quite popular with my fellow blogger and personal friends. So it's kinda funny to me, that I would pick up one of her adult books first.. but it's how the cookie crumbled and I'm so glad it fell that way.

This is such a great story. When I first started this, I was thinking that Liv was bound to help her friend based on morals alone. Not so much, there was so much more to this story then I could have imagined. It had me guessing at every turn. Blood Bound was fast paced, full of action, and filled with just the right amount of romance. I find I read YA mostly these days, because I have trouble finding that perfect balance in the adult selections I pick up. I'm so thrilled that I have found an Author who knows how to do it right!

I don't want to spoil anything, so I'm just going to insist you all read this, whether you have read her stuff yet or not. I am now dying to know what happens in Shadow Bound and by the time you finish it, you will be too!

So it took me a little while to review this.. because I was working on a Sims Trailer for it. I had a hard time coming up with how I wanted to do it... so I decided to take a different approach with this one. I focused on the bond.. because that is what fascinated me the most about this book. I also did some voice over.. “I'm so sorry” lol. I was trying to sound more adult... but in reality it came off more like a child-like phone sex operator. Which is great, because I am an adult. Now I wonder what my customers say about me when they get me on the phone. Anyway, I hope that you all enjoy it! And go get this book! Now!