Review & Tour: Of Blood and Bone

Of Blood and Bone (The Minaldi Legacy, #1) by Courtney Cole
Publisher: Lakehouse Press
Format: eGalley
Source: Kismet Book Tours
Buy It From Amazon |  Goodreads
★★★★☆

Luca Minaldi is powerful, rich and mesmerizing. But he is also a reclusive enigma. He lives in Malta, a fairytale-like place filled with sunshine and sea, beauty and secrets. And Luca’s darkest of secrets is the best kept of them all.

Eva Talbot is spending the summer in Malta to finish up her doctoral dissertation. When she meets Luca, a mysterious and handsome shipping magnate, there is an instant attraction. He has a disturbing and beautiful energy that she has never felt before. But she senses the darkness that lives within him.

Eva is hired to care for his mother, a woman who suffers from dementia, but it is Luca who Eva will eventually risk everything to save. She desperately wants to reach inside of him and fix what is broken, while at the same time, she knows that she is falling for him. Her life becomes a swirling chaos of darkness and romance, of secrets and mystery. And the question that emerges will become the most important answer of all.

Can she save Luca from the darkness that plagues him without losing herself?

The answer is a matter of life or death.

Oozing mystery, suspense, and intrigue, Of Blood and Bone by Courtney Cole makes for a perfect Fall read! While this is certainly not for young adults, it is definitely worthy of being reviewed here at Inklings Read!

Courtney does a fantastic job of teasing the readers in this book with the fantastic plot and steamy romance! She slowly reveals bits and pieces of information, but only enough to keep you guessing. I loved that she chose to write this story using multiple POVs! That extra peek into the mind of the characters really enhanced the story. Not to mention that layout was great for a dark, suspenseful book like this.

I could not help but fall under Luca's spell right along with Eva. Not only was he a perfect gentleman, but he was also well off, sophisticated, and protective. All great traits in my book! The erotic (yes, erotic!) and romantic scenes between the two of them were perfect! I would never have guessed that this was Courtney's first adult book!

Of Blood and Bone was a surprisingly quick read for me. I was finished in a day! Just one freaking day! When I say this book was addicting that is a slight understatement. I devoured this book! I highly, highly, highly, recommend it to my adult followers. I cannot wait to see what comes next in the second installment of The Minaldi Legacy!

*Special thanks to Kismet Book Tours and Courtney Cole for allowing me to be part of this tour!*

Review & Tour: The Age of Miracles

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
Publisher: Random House
Format: ARC
Source: TLC Book Tours
Release Date: June 26th 2012
Buy It From Amazon |  Goodreads
★★★★☆

“It still amazes me how little we really knew. . . . Maybe everything that happened to me and my family had nothing at all to do with the slowing. It’s possible, I guess. But I doubt it. I doubt it very much.”

Luminous, haunting, unforgettable, The Age of Miracles is a stunning fiction debut by a superb new writer, a story about coming of age during extraordinary times, about people going on with their lives in an era of profound uncertainty.

On a seemingly ordinary Saturday in a California suburb, Julia and her family awake to discover, along with the rest of the world, that the rotation of the earth has suddenly begun to slow. The days and nights grow longer and longer, gravity is affected, the environment is thrown into disarray. Yet as she struggles to navigate an ever-shifting landscape, Julia is also coping with the normal disasters of everyday life—the fissures in her parents’ marriage, the loss of old friends, the hopeful anguish of first love, the bizarre behavior of her grandfather who, convinced of a government conspiracy, spends his days obsessively cataloging his possessions. As Julia adjusts to the new normal, the slowing inexorably continues.

The Age of Miracles is a somber and insightful look into the end of it all. I began reading filled with hope. That hope was slowly drained. I wanted to see Julia beat the odds and persevere! Instead I got a nostalgic look back on things that we take for granted every single day: a bird, sunlight, grass, etc. It was through Julia’s eyes that I could see just how delicate the balance of our planet is… and just how easily it can all come apart. The greatest thing about this book is the realism! The worst and most chilling part is that we’ve already experienced some of it.

"Haunting." In one word that's how I would describe The Age of Miracles. There were several scenes that left me hopeless for Julia’s world. I compare the feeling, not plot, of this book to the movie The Butterfly Effect, if you've ever seen it. Despite the slowness of the novel, I found it hard to stop reading. The Age of Miracles was not difficult to push through, not uninteresting, just slow at times. I guess that goes with the whole “slowing” of the world thing.

I was going to give The Age of Miracles 3 stars due to the open ending and lack of conclusion, until I realized that’s the whole point! This book is supposed to make you think. It’s supposed to evoke feeling. For that, I give The Age of Miracles 4 stars. Read this if you are looking for an eco-apocalyptic read that is thoughtful and emotional.

*Special thanks to Random House and TLC Book Tours for the opportunity to review this book!*

Click the banner above to see a full list of tour stops!

Review: Hemlock

Hemlock (Hemlock, #1) by Kathleen Peacock
Publisher: HarperCollins 
Format: ARC
Source: Blog Tour 
Release Date: May 8th, 2012
Amazon |  Goodreads
★★★★★

Mackenzie and Amy were best friends. Until Amy was brutally murdered.

Since then, Mac’s life has been turned upside down. She is being haunted by Amy in her dreams, and an extremist group called the Trackers has come to Mac’s hometown of Hemlock to hunt down Amy’s killer: A white werewolf.

Lupine syndrome—also known as the werewolf virus—is on the rise across the country. Many of the infected try to hide their symptoms, but bloodlust is not easy to control.

Wanting desperately to put an end to her nightmares, Mac decides to investigate Amy’s murder herself. She discovers secrets lurking in the shadows of Hemlock, secrets about Amy’s boyfriend, Jason, her good pal Kyle, and especially her late best friend. Mac is thrown into a maelstrom of violence and betrayal that puts her life at risk.

Kathleen Peacock’s thrilling novel is the first in the Hemlock trilogy, a spellbinding urban fantasy series filled with provocative questions about prejudice, trust, lies, and love.

Typically I'm not a fan of murder mystery novels, but I couldn't turn down the opportunity to read one with a werewolf spin! Not only did Hemlock keep me on my toes, but it also played out completely different from how I envisioned it! The unpredictability of this novel is what kept me hooked throughout it's entirety. 

In Hemlock, Kathleen provides a much needed breath of fresh air to the the werewolf genre. I found it interesting that Kathleen made the existence of werewolves common knowledge in this book. The lupine syndrome is treated as an epidemic. It's such a simple premise, but I can't recall a werewolf story I've read where the same is true! Hemlock seemed to carry a Salem Witch Trial likeness with it that only added to the tension of the murder storyline.

The characters in Hemlock were fantastic! They were real and relate-able; especially Mac, the protagonist. She was strong and very likeable. On top of the characters, I thoroughly enjoyed the romance aspect of this book! Kathleen did a wonderful job providing tension within the love triangle without making it annoying and overbearing. Let's face it: it's pretty easy to get frustrated with love triangles! Two-thumbs up for a successfully written romance!

Hemlock will appeal to readers of many genres! Yes, even those who haven't liked werewolf books in the past! There's much, much more to this book than werewolves. Whether you are looking for a good YA romance, an intriguing mystery, or an action-packed read Hemlock will deliver!

This book was reviewed as part of the Hemlock ARC Tour, hosted by PARAFANTASY!

Ezmirelda - Thanks so much for the opportunity to read this awesomeness!

EOTW + Friendly Fire Tour: Ebook Giveaway!

"Ebook of the Week" is a weekly feature here at Inklings Read. Each week I feature an ebook as well as a giveaway! Ebooks featured in these posts will always be well rated and reasonably priced! Sometimes, if we're lucky, the author will drop by to say "Hi" with a few words on their book as well. Now let’s showcase Inklings Read’s Ebook of the Week! This week we have Lynn Seresin, author of The Thin Air Saga, here with us today as part of the official Friendly Fire Tour!

Friendly Fire (Thin Air Saga, #2) by Lynn Seresin

Though their love remains strong, the pressure of constant danger has taken its toll on Alice and Daniel’s relationship. Paralda’s assassins continue their murder spree in New York City, targeting girls who resemble Alice in an effort to fulfill the air king’s deadly directive. As if life wasn’t complicated enough, the couple must also fiercely guard the secret of Alice’s emergent powers and true identity from everyone--including their closest friends--to protect her safety. Enter Ash and Terrance: two former elementals, each with their own set of reasons for transmuting to the human plane. For Ash, the material realm represents freedom and the possibility of fulfilling a forbidden wish. Terrance has only one aim in the mortal world: to win Alice’s heart. And it seems he’ll stop at nothing to achieve his goal.

Goodreads | Amazon

About Lynn Lynn Seresin worked as a children's book editor and freelance writer of middle-grade fiction before writing Thin Air, the first book in the Thin Air saga. She lives with her husband, daughter and son in Connecticut. A black Lab named Dudley, a teacup Chihuahua named Layla, and a black cat named Shadow share their household

Want to connect with Lynn?

Website | Goodreads

Friendly Fire Tour: Casting Call

As part of the Friendly Fire tour, I thought it would be fun to do a casting call for the main characters! Thanks to Lynn, author of the series, I was able to get some more in depth descriptions of the characters so I could truly bring them to life for the readers! Here’s what I came up with:

Alice | Amanda Seyfried Where You’ve Seen Her: Red Riding Hood (2011), Letters To Juliet (2010), Dear John (2010), Mean Girls (2004). Character Description: Tall, willowy, with long blonde hair, blue eyes, and a porcelain complexion. A very delicate sort of beauty. As for her fashion sense, I imagine her in pale colors--soft grays, pale rose, cream, ice blue) in clothing that flows a bit (as opposed to skin-tight), with a sort of bohemian-chic style. She'd also take Dante along for his stylistic input! Sarah’s Notes: Lynn and I both agree that Amanda is, hands down, the PERFECT Alice.

daniel | Alex Pettyfer Where You’ve Seen Him: Beastly (2011), I Am Number Four (2011), Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker (2006).  Character Description: Tall, slender, green-eyed (soft, not piercing green), with chestnut-colored hair fairly shortly cropped, but not so short that it doesn't have a bit of play. He's extremely handsome, with a fine nose, full lips, high cheekbones. His fashion style borders on non-existent; Jeans, pull-overs, thermal-knit henleys, hoodies, flannel shirts, worn boots. Sarah’s Notes: For some reason Daniel was the hardest to cast for me. I didn’t have a pre-formed idea in my head. Lynn offered up some suggestions (see below) but I just couldn’t picture them with Amanda Seyfried. Though Alex is more masculine than how I originally envisioned Daniel, I think he could play the role really well.  Alernates: Kevin Zegers & Shiloh Fernandez

Dante | Thomas Dekker Where You’ve Seen Him: The Secret Circle (2011-2012), Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009), Heroes (2006-2007).   Character Description: Based on Adam Lambert. Anyone with Adam's dark good looks; blue eyes; tall, slender build. Dante wears a nose stud (sometimes a ring), has pierced ears, and a very dramatic, flambuoyant sense of style--lots of black leather, studs, boots. He's up for anything sexy and over-the-top glam! Sarah’s Notes: Thomas’ character on The Secret Circle is so incredibly dramatic. I think that, if we can’t have Adam Lambert play Dante, than Thomas would be the perfect stand in. Those who watch the show already know he can rock some eyeliner!

Shane | Andrew Garfield Where You’ve Seen Him: The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), The Social Network (2010), Never Let Me Go (2010).    Character Description: Large, brown, expressive eyes and chin-length, brown hair parted in the middle, usually swept behind his ears. Prominent (in a good sense) brows. He's handsome, in a sensitive, poetic kind of way. Sarah’s Notes: I picked Andrew for his performance in Never Let Me Go. No matter what he does, he always comes across as a sensitive soul to me. And look *points to picture* PROMINENT BROWS and big eyes!

Review: Within

Within by Clare C. Marshall
Publisher: Faery Ink Press 
Format: Ebook
Pages: 192
Source: Author (provided for tour)
Amazon | Goodreads
★★★☆☆

Trinity Hartell’s life changed after the accident. Left with irreversible brain damage, she becomes a burden to her mother, a cause for heartbreak for her boyfriend Zack, and a flattened obstacle for her best friend, Ellie.

But then she starts writing. Perhaps it’s a coincidence that the psychotic, murdering protagonist of her novel bears a striking similarity to the charming Wiley Dalton, a mayoral candidate in the upcoming election.

Or, perhaps not...

First thing I need to say is… CREEPY! The whole dang story is creepy. The villain is so twisted and merciless that at times I found it hard to stomach. On top of that, there are some very dark and somber undertones as you observe the family and friends of Trinity deal with the accident. I could feel the tension building as I progressed through the story. Though I may not read thrillers often, this story has made me want more of them!

The plot starts off a bit on the slow side, but really gains momentum as Trinity begins her writing! I found some parts to be predictable, but overall the story was original and, at times, heart-wrenching. The plot certainly didn’t play out as I had originally thought it would, but I love it when stories keep me on my toes!

I had a few qualms with the characters in this story.  Many of the the characters were dull, underdeveloped, and lacking spark and originality. They didn’t grab me and make me care what happened to them. The mystery of the plot is what pushed me through. Because I appreciate well developed characters as much as I do, I found Within hard to get through at times.

Despite my issues with the characters, I really enjoyed Marshall’s writing style! There is a wonderful flow and pacing about it. It is clear and concise without being wordy or too simplistic. Overall, Within pours out suspense and developing talent!  I’m very curious to see where Clare’s work goes in the future. She is definitely one to watch!

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This review has been posted as part of the Official Within Blog Tour. I’d like to give a special thanks to Clare Marshall for allowing me to participate!

Official Blog Tour | Faery Ink Press

Guest Post: Nansi Kunze

As part of the Dangerously Placed blog tour, Nansi Kunze has honored us with her digital presence here at Inklings Read! It is wonderful to have such a talented author stop by and give us some insight into her development as an author as well as some advice for aspiring authors.

Nansi’s Thoughts on becoming an author

I wasn’t one of those kids who dreams of becoming a writer one day. As a teenager, I didn’t really give my career plans much thought – to be honest, I mostly just thought about boys. But I was good at foreign languages, so I decided to become a language teacher. It was only after teaching for a couple of years that the idea of being a writer began to entice me. Once I’d started writing, though, I quickly became addicted to it. Creating my own worlds, making characters do – and be – anything I wanted: what a rush! I soon learned, however, that writing a novel and becoming a published author are two entirely different things. Of course, you can get the writing rush without anyone ever reading your work; writing purely for your own enjoyment is cool too. But if you really want to be a published author, here are some things you might want to bear in mind:

Only a complete idiot would become a novelist for the money! Most novelists only earn a few thousand dollars a year. So you’ll probably need a steady day-job to support your writing habit (I recommend plumbing – it seems to have worked well for Mario).

It usually takes years to become a published author. Just like any other profession, you have to train and practice for a long time to become any good at it. I started writing my first novel in 2000. My first published novel hit the shelves in 2008 – and many writers have to wait longer than that!

Writing a novel means spending months shut up alone with your computer. And then more months fixing up what you wrote the first time. And then more months fixing up what you wrote the second time. And then … well, you get the idea.

So, are you still interested? Then here’s my advice:

Aspiring authors are often told to ‘write what you know’. Possibly more important, though, is writing what you like. I started out trying to write for adults, and it just didn’t work, because that wasn’t really what I liked. I liked reading YA, playing video games and watching the TV shows my high school students watched … so when I began to write YA instead, it felt so much more me. Don’t limit yourself to one genre when you start writing – try a few out, and see which ones fit you.

Successful writers have to walk a fine line between overconfidence and self-doubt. If you want to be an author you have to believe in your ability and the value of what you’re writing in order to keep working at it. But you also have to accept that what you write won’t be perfect. The first novel manuscript I wrote was awful – most first novels are, though I didn’t know that at the time. It took me over a year to write, and it really hurt to hear that it wasn’t all that great! But, looking back, my readers were right. Find yourself some readers who know good writing, and whose opinion and objectivity you can trust. Only let them read your work when you’re ready to hear what they really think. If it’s bad news, go wallow in self-pity (preferably with ice cream) for a few days, and maybe start a new writing project. By the time you’re ready to take a look at your work again, you may well find that your readers’ assessment is useful to you.

Setting goals can be helpful when writing – after all, if you never finish a manuscript, you’re never going to get it published! But goals need to be flexible, too. You’ll need to do several drafts, you may get stuck at some point, and you might need time away from the manuscript – possibly months – before you can see it clearly enough to improve it. (You could also consider sending it to a professional manuscript assessment agency for another viewpoint.)

And finally, remember that you’re writing for the love of it. If you’re finding a chapter less than fun to write, chances are it’s going to be boring to read too – think about changing or removing it. If you’re finding your whole project isn’t enjoyable, put it away and start something else. Don’t despair if that happens. Being an author is totally worth the huge amount of time and effort it takes, because you get to do what you love and share your worlds with thousands of other people. Hearing that your first novel sucks? Yeah, that’s painful. But hearing that a reader you’ve never met loves your latest book? That’s priceless.

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Would you like to learn more about Nansi and her projects? Check out these links for more information:

 Author Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Buy Her Books

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Review: Dangerously Placed

Dangerously Placed by Nansi Kunze
Publisher: Random House Australia
Format: Paperback
Pages: 274
Source: NetGalley
Amazon | Goodreads
★★★☆☆

A fantastic romantic sci-fi thriller for teens featuring virtual reality, simulated environments, and just the right mix of mystery and first love

He lay on the ground, his eyes open but unseeing, his pinstriped body blinking in and out of existence like the picture on a fault television.

Alex Thaler can't wait to start her dream work experience placement at Virk, where staff from all over the world mingle in an astonishing virtual office. But when an employee is found murdered, the dream becomes a nightmare—because Alex is the prime suspect. Fortunately, Alex's friends are willing to brave shark tanks, disgusting pathology specimens, and even a nude beach in order to clear her name. Can a hippie chick, a goth girl in a lab coat, and two guys with a taste for  blowing things up really help solve the mystery before Alex becomes the next victim?

Dangerously Placed was quite a thrill ride. I was blown away by how developed and realistic Nansi’s virtual reality technologies were! They were extremely well thought out. So much that I could definitely see us using similar technologies in the future. I also enjoyed how the book was physically broken up: Each chapter takes place over one day. This made it easy to keep track of how time progressed. Sometimes, for me, it is easy to lose track of how much time has passed in novels. Unfortunately, I did find Dangerously Placed lacking in character development initially… BUT by the end the flatness I felt at first was gone and I had a chance to see the intricacies of the secondary characters.

Though this was an interesting, developed story, it did not grab me like the many sci-fi books I have read before. Perhaps the timing was off, but I just wasn’t “feeling it.” I do however feel that this book definitely has a place in the YA sci-fi genre!

Dangerously Placed finished as a strong sci-fi adventure! At 274 pages, this qualifies as a quick read. I definitely recommend this to fans of the sci-fi and adventure genres. I’m very curious to see what Nansi has in store for us next!

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I’m the last stop on the Dangerously Placed blog tour!! Cheers to an good book and some awesome bloggers. Thank you to NetGalley, Nansi Kunze, and Shara Zaval for allowing me to be part of this tour!  Don’t forget to enter my giveaway of Dangerously Placed HERE and watch out for a guest post by Nansi this Sunday!
 Goodreads | Amazon | Author Site

Giveaway: Dangerously Placed

Hi Inklings!

As part of the Dangerously Placed blog tour I will be giving away one paperback copy of the book! Stay tuned for my review and a guest post from Nansi on November 13th! For more info see below:

Dangerously Placed by nansi kunze

Goodreads | Author | Amazon

A fantastic romantic sci-fi thriller for teens featuring virtual reality, simulated environments, and just the right mix of mystery and first love

He lay on the ground, his eyes open but unseeing, his pinstriped body blinking in and out of existence like the picture on a fault television.
Alex Thaler can't wait to start her dream work experience placement at Virk, where staff from all over the world mingle in an astonishing virtual office. But when an employee is found murdered, the dream becomes a nightmare—because Alex is the prime suspect.

Fortunately, Alex's friends are willing to brave shark tanks, disgusting pathology specimens, and even a nude beach in order to clear her name. Can a hippie chick, a goth girl in a lab coat, and two guys with a taste for  blowing things up really help solve the mystery before Alex becomes the next victim?

tour schedule

Nov 7 (Monday) Jex at Everything and Nothing
Nov 8 (Tuesday) Lyndsey at Strangemore
Nov 9 (Wednesday) Kellie at Reawrite
Nov 10 (Thursday) Bonnie at A Backwards Story
Nov 11 (Friday) Pica at Pica Reads
Nov 12 (Saturday) Lacey at Owl Love You Books
Nov 13 (Sunday) Sarah at Inklings Read

giveaway

Please click "read more" to enter using the rafflecopter form!

Review: Geek Girl

Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennett
Publisher: Cedar Fort Publishing
Release Date: December 8th, 2011 
Format: Kindle Ebook 
Source: NetGalley  
Amazon | Goodreads
★★★☆☆ (3.5 stars)

"Think I can turn that boy bad?" 17-year-old Jen turns her life upside down when, out of boredom, she makes a bet that she can turn school geek Trevor into someone like her. Instead, the goth girl finds herself sucked into his world of sci-fi movies, charity work, and even-ugh!-bowling. To truly belong with him-and with her new foster family-she must first come to terms with her violent past.

First off, Geek Girl is one to own simply for it’s stunning cover!! The original cover was ok…. but this immediately made me want to grab it from NetGalley. If you weren't sold on the cover, let me tell you there is quite a good story found within it. I was so happy to finally see a NICE guy as the love interest. I’m getting so tired of the YA genre with all of the love interests who are just plain assholes.  

Geek Girl was a refreshing change for me. Not only is there a nice love interest, but there is also a completely refreshing main character! Jen is nothing like the usual insecure, boring, dependent,  YA females. Not that I mind those types… I not only found her story intriguing, but her character was extremely complex. I’m a sucker for complex characters… I love that Cindy was able to make me hate Jen for playing with Trevor’s emotions in the beginning, but then have my mind completely changed by the very end. I really enjoyed watching Jen discover that Trevor wasn't exactly what she thought he would be like. Definitely a book with a "Don't judge a book by it's cover" theme.

For me, there were definitely some issues with pacing, but overall this was a very enjoyable read! Geek Girl would be great for readers looking for a light, quick read that they can finish in one sitting (at least I did). It will leave you smiling and laughing throughout! Though this book may have its flaws, there is a wonderful story to be found here and it is most definitely worth checking out!

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This review is featured as part of the Geek Girl Blog Tour

 

Tour Stops | Goodreads | Amazon | Author Site

Review: Thin Air

Thin Air (Thin Air, #1) by Lynn Seresin
Publisher: Self Published 
Format: Kindle Ebook 
Pages: 452
Source: Author 
Amazon | Goodreads
★★★☆☆ (3.5 stars) 

Alice Ayre is no ordinary teenager. She took her first name from a statue in Central Park, pulled her last name out of the air (literally), and she’s actually almost a thousand years old. In fact, the only “ordinary” thing about Alice is that she’s in love.

Alice was a sylphid—a winged air spirit—when she spotted Daniel Field camping in the Adirondacks and lost her heart to the handsome NYU student. Intangible to the human senses, her only hope of winning his heart resides in becoming mortal, even though transmutation is forbidden by Paralda, ruler of the air. Risking punishment, however, seems a small price to pay for a chance at true happiness.

This is one of those indie books that makes me wonder why it hasn’t already been picked up by a publisher. I feel that with further editing and a few other changes, This Air could be a young adult hit!

The elemental world was fleshed out  so well in Thin Air! I was hooked on the beautiful descriptions from the start. Seresin has a poetic writing style that I absolutely fell in love with. This style really showed through when she was writing about emotion and love. For example, I think she did a wonderful job expressing Aeris’ desperate longing for Daniel. Seresin managed to make Aeris’ love for Daniel believable, even if initially seemed out of place.

As far as the plot goes, I found it to be quite predictable. Being predictable however, did not take away from my enjoyment of the story and of the writing. I found that the story’s strongest points were the beginning and the end. In the beginning, I just loved reading about the naiveté and innocence that Aeris possessed once she became human. Seresin did a great job making Aeris’ transformation to a human realistic.  It was reminiscent of the 1984 mermaid film, Splash, starring Tom Hanks. Unfortunately, Thin Air did hit some dry spells in the middle for me. During that time, some circumstances and events seemed forced to push the story along. Overall I found the story to be enjoyable, but predictable.

I found the romance between Alice (Aeris’ human name) and Daniel to be cute and sultry (if that makes sense). They had some great chemistry from the start. Despite my love for Daniel, I secretly hoped for a love triangle between Alice, Daniel, and Terra. I would like to see Terra make an appearance in the second book! *crosses fingers*

It’s not often that you see books about elementals. This would be my first, but I don’t think it will be my last. I’m definitely looking forward to reading the second installment in the Thin Air Saga! Thin Air had a strong ending and left me wanting to find out what happens next!

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This review is featured as part of the Thin Air Book Tour

 

Goodreads | Lulu | Barnes and Noble | Amazon | Facebook

As a grand prize, Lynn's giving away a signed paperback copy of Thin Air, and a gorgeous pair of earrings to one lucky, randomly chosen entrant! Here's how you can enter for this amazing prize: Visit the blogs listed on the main tour site and collect all of the letters. The letters are only featured on some of the blogs, not all of them. Once you have collected the letters, they should form two words that you can enter in THIS FORM to win!

Next Tour Stop (10/5): Everything To Do With Books (Giveaway)

FAQ: Blog Tours

 *Updated 1/17/12*

Hi Inklings!

Recently I’ve been doing some research on blog tours and I thought that it would make for a great feature on the blog! All questions below are my own, however if you think of a question you would like me to research, please let me know! Also, if you have any information to add to this post, please comment!

what is a “blog tour”?

A blog tour is basically when an author goes from blog to blog (usually 10-20 blogs) and provides original and interesting content to promote their book. This content could be a guest post, giveaway, interview, book review etc. Bloggers who host the tour content are typically called “tour hosts.”  The person coordinating the book tour is considered the “blog tour coordinator.”

As a tour host your most important role is usually reading and reviewing the book (which you were already going to do anyway, right?). You are asked to post the review and the original content provided on the assigned blog tour date. In most cases, your participation may be as involved or uninvolved as you’d like. Some blog coordinators and hosts come up with some extremely creative and original posts!

You have my attention. what’s in it for me?

If you are a blogger, there are many awesome benefits to hosting a blog tour:

• More blog exposure! Your reach is expanded with the incoming traffic from the tour site.
• You may get an opportunity to pick the brains of a great author.
• Interesting and original content is essentially provided for you, with little work on your part!
• Generally you receive the touring book free of charge.

As an author, there are the following benefits:

“You can reach at least a few hundred people on a blog, and save time, money and the fear of being a loser when no one shows up to your reading.” –  Felicia Sullivan, the senior online marketing manager of Collins, an imprint of HarperCollins (2007)

• Global exposure!
• You don’t have to travel like you would for a bookstore tour.
• Fairly Inexpensive and you can be as involved as you want to.
• You have control over how many blog stops and how long the tour runs.

are blog hosts paid or required to write positive reviews?

We most definitely do NOT get paid!! Talk about unethical… The only person in the process who may get paid is the blog tour coordinator or touring company. The blog tour takes extreme effort on their part!

It would also be unethical to require bloggers to write positive reviews of the touring book… I believe that many tour coordinators allow the host to back out if they feel uncomfortable promoting a book they are not fond of. Many, if not all, of the touring sites specifically target hosts that they feel would have a genuine interest in the touring book to prevent that from happening.

I’m interested! how do i get involved?

In most cases, book blog tours are coordinated by the publisher or a touring site like the ones below, however it is possible for an author or blog to promote a book by coordinating their own book tour.  The more well known touring sites can be found below. Each site has different requirements for tour hosts, so please refer to the individual site for the details.

Around The World ARC Tours
AToMR Book Blog Touring
Bewitching Book Tours
Enchanted Book Tours
Goddess Fish Promotions
Kismet Book Touring
The {Teen} Book Scene
Pump Up Your Book
TLC Book Tours


If I’m missing any great tour sites, please comment below so that I can add them!

Further resources

These are some links that I used for research. You may find them helpful if you are looking for more information on blog tours.

Book Publicity Blog: What’s A Blog Tour
NY Times: The Author Will Take Q's Now
Touring In A Virtual World