eBooks Now Available on Kindle's Lending Library

Ordained and Metamorphosis are now available to read for FREE on the Kindle Lending Library.

Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop - 3 Prize Packs (INT)

It's that time again!

Hosted by I Am a Reader, Not a Writer and Oasis For YA.

Quick and simple. I'm giving the winner a choice of three prize packages.

Prize Pack #1

Any book(s) the winner wants for a list price up to

$15 from the Book Depository*

*If the book depository ships to you, then you are eligible to win this prize pack! Check here to see if they ship to your country!

Prize Pack #2
eCopies of Ordained and Metamorphosis
to be gifted through Amazon

Prize Pack #3
Signed copy of Falling In Between (ARC)
Expected Publication: February 14, 2012

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Shattered Dreams by Ellie James (ARC)

Shattered Dreams
Ellie James
Publication: December 6, 2011

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Trinity Monsour wants nothing more than to live a normal life. But that isn’t as easy as it seems. Trinity is different. She is special. She sees visions, and for those she’s seen, it’s already too late. Trinity arrives on her aunt’s doorstep in New Orleans with virtually no knowledge of her mysterious heritage. She begins settling into life at a new school and even starts making friends. But all too quickly her dreams accelerate; twisted, terrifying visions of a girl locked in a dark room. And when the head cheerleader, Jessica, goes missing, Trinity knows she has no choice but to step forward with what she’s seen. But people believe that Trinity has information about Jessica’s disappearance not because of a dream, but because she is involved. She is kind-of dating Jessica’s ex-boyfriend, Chase, and Jessica did pull a nasty prank on Trinity. Revenge seems like the likeliest scenario. Nothing prepares Trinity for the dark odyssey that ensues while searching for Jessica, including the surprising romance she finds with Chase, or the shocking truths she learns, not just about the girl who has gone missing, but the past that has been hidden from her.

Shattered Dreams had an intriguing story line about a girl with psychic visions but the characters' actions and reactions just didn't seem real to me at times. What I did like was that the story took place in post-Katrina New Orleans, as the rundown environment and abandoned buildings caused this eerie feeling to always be present in the back of my mind as I progressed through the story.

Trinity has known for a long time that she can see death before it comes. Since her parents died when she was young, Trinity grew up with her father's mom, who spent the rest of her years shielding Trinity and telling her not to speak of her ability. When she sees the death of her grandmother, Trinity of course tries to stop it but was unsuccessful. So when she has multiple visions of her frenemy Jessica bleeding and in trouble, she tries to speak up. Of course it backfires, cause who wouldn't suspect the girl that had a recent altercation with the missing girl? But even under scrutiny from the police and some of Jessica's friends, Trinity continues to put herself on the line to figure out what's happening to Jessica. And an interesting reason for why her grandmother kept her hidden and shielded all those years comes to light.

One thing I will say is that the romance between Trinity and Chase seemed rushed. From the first chapter we're told that Trinity is the new girl, but she's obviously been around long enough to be Chase's lab partner and work on a project together outside of class - which is why Jessica is wary of Trinity's intentions. Apparently they're both interested in each other but we're never really told why this attraction exists. One minute Chase is Jessica's boyfriend and the next he's chasing after Trininty the same day Jessica goes missing. Even if they had broken up the night before, her dissappearance should've hit him harder. The way he started moving in on Trinity just didn't seem realistic...and for the life of me, I couldn't figure out why Trinity would be interested in a guy that behaved like that.

All in all, the novel was a good read. The prose was fine and the storyline kept me interested enough to keep moving forward. Will I ever re-read this? No. Will I read the next in the series? Probably, as curiosity usually gets the best of me, but I hope there's better character depth than was given in Shattered Dreams.

ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley.

Best I've Read 2011 - METAMORPHOSIS

Metamorphosis has been selected as part of the Best I've Read 2011! Lots of amazing books are being spotlighted and there are TONS of giveaways going on all week, including one for Metamorphosis this Saturday (the 17th) at Books Complete Me.

Check out the Best I've Read Blog Schedule and start entering all the fabulous giveaways!

And thank you for selecting Metamorphosis as the Best I've Read 2011!!!

Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel (ARC)

Dearly, Departed
Lia Habel
Publication: October 18, 2011

Synopsis: Love can never die.

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

I almost didn't bother finishing this one. I guess I envisioned a dystopian-zombie book to have a lot of action in it. So when I was 50% done with Dearly, Departed I found myself asking 'Why am I still reading this?' There had been a little bit of action but mostly it was just dialogue. I didn't mind the multiple points of view, or the idea that zombies could be tamed, but I seriously wanted the nontamed zombies to burst through the doors and start killing off all the characters just so I wouldn't have to hear them talk anymore.

So why did I keep reading? Luckily I was late getting to this ARC. If I hadn't noticed Dearly, Departed getting an average of 4 stars on GoodReads, I don't think I would've bothered to finish this novel. The high ratings peaked my curiosity cause I just wasn't seeing it. So...I stuck it out. Sure enough, I finally did see why it was getting decent ratings. Unfortunately, what I considered to be the bread and butter of this novel didn't begin until I hit about 69%...and Dearly, Departed is a looong book at 470 pages so I really had to force myself to read a lot before I felt like it was worth the read.

So in hindsight, the first 68% of this book - eh. The last 32% - freakin' awesome. If you can stand to read the first part, all the better for you. But if you can't, just skip ahead...you're not missing anything you won't figure out as you read the end.

The one positive aspect about this novel: Bram. I would have completely given up on this novel regardless of posted ratings if this one character hadn't been worth reading about. And maybe Pamela, who managed to turn into a kick-ass zombie-killer in a pettycoat.

ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley.

Previously Loved Book Giveaway - December

November's winner of Passion by Lauren Kate is....

Lieder Madchen

December's Book Giveaway

Hardback Copy

Ripple by Mandy Hubbard

See my review of Ripple.

Wanna enter to win? Head over to my giveaway page.