Ohana Reads: Guest Post

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Monday, October 30, 2017

Guest Review: Now I Rise by Kiersten White

Release Date: June 27th, 2017
Read: October 2017
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Series: The Conqueror's Saga, #2
Format: ARC, 471 pages
Source: Publisher in exchange for an honest review

Description from GoodReads:

She has no allies. No throne. All she has is what she’s always had: herself.

After failing to secure the Wallachian throne, Lada Dracul is out to punish anyone who dares to cross her blood-strewn path. Filled with a white-hot rage, she storms the countryside with her men, accompanied by her childhood friend Bogdan, terrorizing the land. But brute force isn’t getting Lada what she wants. And thinking of Mehmed brings little comfort to her thorny heart. There’s no time to wonder whether he still thinks about her, even loves her. She left him before he could leave her.

What Lada needs is her younger brother Radu’s subtlety and skill. But Mehmed has sent him to Constantinople—and it’s no diplomatic mission. Mehmed wants control of the city, and Radu has earned an unwanted place as a double-crossing spy behind enemy lines. Radu longs for his sister’s fierce confidence—but for the first time in his life, he rejects her unexpected plea for help. Torn between loyalties to faith, to the Ottomans, and to Mehmed, he knows he owes Lada nothing. If she dies, he could never forgive himself—but if he fails in Constantinople, will Mehmed ever forgive him?

As nations fall around them, the Dracul siblings must decide: what will they sacrifice to fulfill their destinies? Empires will topple, thrones will be won…and souls will be lost.

Review:

No one will be more ruthless
Like the previous book, this one serves up a lot of drama, deep questions, and make-or-break decisions. It leaves you constantly wondering and complaining about choices the characters have made. And that makes it so good. It's not often that a book leaves me questioning and hoping for a character's safety and joy.

And I do love each and every character, good or bad. They are all well-developed, and always show a little bit of humanity, no matter how evil their actions are. Lada is by far my favourite. She is ruthless but doesn't require forgiveness. Her storyline in this book is, in my opinion, more interesting.

The whole book reads like a young adult, and less complicated Game of Thrones. I could not wait until the next chapter from either Lada or Radu's perspective, and I cannot wait until the next book.

Rating:

Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Blog Tour: Reunited by Colleen Houck

Hello and welcome to the Reunited Blog Tour, hosted by Rockstar Book Tours! I've been the biggest fan of Colleen Houck, since her Tigers series, as most of you all know by now. So of course I jumped at the chance to be apart of the blog tour! Today on the tour you'll see the top ten things Colleen is excited for you to look forward to in Reunited, as well as a giveaway! So I hope you all enjoy!

Reunited by Colleen Houck

Release Date: August 8th, 2017

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Series: Reawakened, #3

Format: Hardcover, 464 pages

Description from GoodReads:

After surviving her otherworldly adventure, Lily wakes up on her nana’s farm having forgotten everything. Her sun prince, her travels to Egypt, and her journey to the Afterlife are all distant memories.

But Lily is not the girl she once was. Her body is now part human, part lion, and part fairy. And if that isn’t bad enough, she must now harness this power of three and become Wasret: a goddess destined to defeat the evil god Seth once and for all.

With the help of her old friend Dr. Hassan, Lily departs on her final voyage through the cosmos and across the plains of Egypt. On the journey, she will transform into the being she is destined to become.

Reunited is the heart-pounding conclusion to the Reawakened series.

It is time for Lily to find her sunset.

Top Ten Things to Look Forward to in Reunited!

1. Ahmose-Though Ahmose makes an appearance in all three books, you really get to know this tall, dark, and handsome stranger in Reunited. Ahmose is a quiet man. He tends to keep his thoughts and emotions to himself, but he feels deeply and a lot is going on beneath his calm demeanor. There are many sweet scenes between Ahmose and Lily and I think you’re going to love him.

2. Cherty-My ferryman returns in Reunited. We learn more about his job and get to see him in action once again. He’s one of my absolute favorite characters. I love this surly cosmic sea captain and hope you do too!

3. Apep-The scary snake of Egyptian mythology finally rears his head, literally. As you know I’ve now included snakes in both of my series and though Fanindra can be frightening, this guy will have you shaking in your golden sandals. With fangs larger than spears and the ability to hypnotize you with his eyes, mortals don’t stand much of a chance.

4. People Eating Plants-There is a frightening world in Reunited where things aren’t quite right. The flora is quite nasty and has a terrible habit of luring in the unsuspecting with beauty and scent. Lily must learn how to navigate this dangerous landscape.

5.The Dreamworld-For those of you who are familiar with my series, you know that Asten is called the Dreamer and he has the power of entering the dreams of others. For the first time, you get to experience the dreams of my three heroines and see what they truly wish for through Asten’s eyes.

6.Seth-You finally get to meet the god Seth in this book and figure out how he’s been trapped all these centuries. His prison is not a pretty one and when he emerges, he’s ready to seek revenge once and for all.

7. Unicorn Battle-Yes, you read that right. There is a pretty awesome battle and the unicorns join in. What’s even more amazing than a unicorn battle? A celestial unicorn battle.

8. Heart Scarab-In Reunited you’ll learn what a heart scarab truly is and how the creation and trading of a heart scarab is a key that unlocks many things.

9. The Devourer-My evil queen of the dead returns in Reunited and she’s formed an army. I think the Devourer is my favorite villain. She’s just so bad, it’s almost good and I look forward to every scene she’s in.

10. The Waters of Chaos-In Reunited, you’ll not only learn about but visit the Waters of Chaos. This is the place where all the gods were created. It’s the origin of the cosmos and it’s the setting for the climax of the series.

I hope you’ll enjoy this conclusion to the Egyptian series and love it as much as I do. Hop on to the back of your unicorn and head off on an adventure where danger lurks around every corner and your destination is the stars.

-Colleen Houck

Don't forget to check out the books that started it all!

New York Times Bestselling author Colleen Houck is a lifelong reader whose literary interests include action, adventure, paranormal, science fiction, and romance. When she’s not busy writing, she likes to spend time chatting on the phone with one of her six siblings, watching plays, and shopping online. Colleen has lived in Arizona, Idaho, Utah, California, and North Carolina and is now permanently settled in Salem, Oregon with her husband and a huge assortment of plush tigers.

3 winners will receive a finished copy of REUNITED, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway  

Thank you so much for stopping by, and I hope you all will love Renuited! A don't forget to check out the next and previous stops on the tour!

Week One:

7/31/2017- YA Books Central- Interview

8/1/2017- Here's to Happy Endings- Review

8/2/2017- YA and Wine- Guest Post

8/3/2017- a GREAT read- Review

8/4/2017- Two Chicks on Books- Interview

Week Two:

8/7/2017- Tales of the Ravenous Reader-Review

8/8/2017- Ohana Reads- Guest Post

8/9/2017- Seeing Double In Neverland- Review

8/10/2017- The Cover Contessa- Interview

8/11/2017- Riddle's Reviews- Review

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Blog Tour: Mirage by Tracy Clark

Hello and welcome to the Mirage by Tracy Clark Blog Tour! Today I have for you a brief interview with the author herself, as well as a giveaway for you to enter! I hope you enjoy, and good luck with the giveaway!

Mirage by Tracy Clark

Release Date: July 5th, 2016

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Format: Hardcover, 272 pages

Description from GoodReads:

Seventeen-year-old Ryan Poitier Sharpe is a gutsy, outgoing girl who spends her summer days hurling herself out of planes at her parents’ skydiving center in the Mojave Desert. Fiercely independent and willing to take risks, she challenges those around her to live life fully. But after a brush with death, Ryan is severely altered—she’s not the same thrill-seeking girl she once was and seems to be teetering on the edge of psychosis. As her relationships crumble and her life unravels, Ryan must fight the girl she’s become—or lose herself forever—in this eerie and atmospheric thriller.

Your first published book was a YA fantasy, Mirage is a YA thriller, how did it feel to change things up? What did you have to change or do while writing Mirage that you did when writing The Light Key Trilogy?

I wrote MIRAGE in the summer of 2013 while I was editing book one (SCINTILLATE) and drafting the next book in The Light Key Trilogy. Though one is fantasy/paranormal and one is a thriller, they’re both set in contemporary worlds and they both had elements of danger and mystery so, surprisingly, there wasn’t a huge change-up in my writing. What I found more challenging, was hopping back and forth between my different characters and their individual voices. Cora and Ryan are VERY different from one another.

Something about me: I’ve never been good at taking advice. Hear that drum? No? That’s because it’s in my head and it’s MY drum and I’m a dancing fool! One piece of advice I’ve received from published friends is that I should stick to one genre, develop a readership, and feed that readership what they expect from me. Not bad business advice, but I’m not sure it’s the best creative advice.

I don’t like being told to get in my box and stay in it.

The thing is; I need to feel a quickening about an idea in order to commit to it. I need the idea to light me up and make me stutter rambling sentences to my besties as I try to explain just how freaking bitchen/wonderful/rockin this new idea is. I cannot make myself write an entire book in a particular genre just because I’ve been published in that genre before. I know that might make me less marketable.

Or… or maybe it makes me more interesting. I don’t know. . .

All I truly know is that writers are creative creatures and to deny the lovely idea-bouquet that drops in my lap for the sake of marketing is to stomp all over that bouquet. Sad to have crushed petals of creativity under my boots.

Since I began writing I’ve written full novels in these YA genres: Fantasy, contemporary, dystopian, paranormal, thriller, and historical. I can’t regret any of those efforts for what they’ve taught me and for the joy I had in writing them. I’m a writer because I love it and I’d rather spend time on projects that I’m fired up about regardless of genre. After all this, it shouldn’t surprise you that I have an idea for a YA sci-fi and an adult romance series. *sniffs bouquet* ☺

Tracy Clark is a young-adult writer because she believes teens deserve to know how much they matter and that regardless of what they’re going through, they aren’t alone. In other words, she writes books for her teen self.

She grew up a “Valley Girl” in Southern California but now lives in her home state of Nevada, in a small town at the base of the Sierra Foothills. Her two children teach her the art of distraction and are a continuous source of great dialogue.

Tracy was the recipient of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Work in Progress Grant. A two-time participant in the prestigious Nevada SCBWI Mentor Program. Tracy is a private pilot, an irredeemable dreamer, and a spicy-chocolate connoisseur.