After spending three years in jail and others completely alone, twenty-four-year-old Cole Flint discovers an amazing ability—he can time-travel and teleport. He’s a jumper. So what should the motorcycle-riding, cage-fighting tough guy do? He should protect an innocent eighteen-year-old girl who happens to be in possession of the Staff of Moses. Following the direction of a trio of angels who are determined to shake things up in the Middle East, Cole pairs up with Hannah Carpenter and her pet grizzly while he also tries to change his past and learn the mystery of his birth. Curiously, the King of Jordan knows all about Hannah, and he’s determined to gain possession of the staff. He’ll do anything to possess its power, but is it possible that he’s no more than a pawn, manipulated in time along with Cole and Hannah? Jumper is a mysterious roller coaster of action and a time-traveling adventure that will keep readers guessing right to the very last page.
Jeff is currently an 8th grade English teacher for Davison Community Schools. He coached for 25 years. In the past three years, he stopped coaching and has published three mystery/suspense novels. Loving the Rain, Skeleton Key, and Bulletproof are three stand-alone novels featuring Clay and Tanner Thomas. A fourth novel, a time-traveler action/adventure called Jumper was published on April 30, 2013. Jeff loves sports, reading, writing, and spending time with his awesome family.
There's a girl. Justina Griffith was never the girl who dreamed of going to
prom. Designer dresses and strappy heels? Not her thing. That said, she never
expected her best friend, Ian Clark, to ask her.
And there's a boy. Ian, who always passed her the baseball bat, handle first. Ian, who knew exactly when she needed red licorice. Ian, who promised her the most amazing night at prom.
Then there's a ditch. But when Justina is ditched, figurativelyand literally,
she must piece together--stain-by-stain on her thrift store dress--exactly how
she ended up dateless...with only the help of some opinionated ladies at the
7-Eleven.
To get the whole store, Justina will have to face the boy who
ditched her. Can losing out at her prom ultimately lead to finding true love?
REVIEW
Oh my
gosh, it’s been a long time since I’ve read a romance where I couldn’t wait for
the two main characters to just fall in love and get on with it. Justina and
Ian are definitely going to be added to my “Top Ten Book Couples of 2013” list.
This has been an incredibly fun book to read, and I love the way in which it
was written and how the story unfolds through each stain on Justina’s prom
dress and every bruise and injury on her body.
First of all I really love the cover. It’s
colorful and eye-catching, but mostly it shows the dress which forms a
fundamental part of the story, in its exact style and color. Justina feels like
a blueberry and Oompa Loompa in this dress with its matching blue corsage and
blue dyed shoes, and looking at the cover I’m bound to agree with her. Justina
is such a lovely character, but her self-doubt and assumptions were slightly
bothersome from time to time. Nevertheless, by the middle of the book it made
complete sense why she is the way she is and I have to hand it to this girl:
she endured each blow with dignity. If I was ridiculed by two of the most
popular girls, the zip of my prom dress ripped off, been bitten by a
three-legged Chihuahua named Chomper, and unwillingly been kissed by Dan-O the
Man-O whose dad accidentally spilled a bowl of soy sauce on my dress, I
would’ve cracked like an egg in no time.
Ian was
undoubtedly my favorite character. He is all-out boyfriend material, and
because I liked Justina and fell in love with Ian, I was rooting for this
friends-to-lovers couple all the way. They just couldn’t seem to be in the same
spot at the same time, and their prom night ended being an incredibly
hilarious, but also sentimental journey not only for Justina, Ian, Donna (the
self-proclaimed cougar), Gilda (the shop assistant at the 7-Eleven), the two
stoner Mikes with their girlfriends Serenity and Bliss, but also for the reader
who gets tagged along on Justina’s numerous quests in finding Ian, who
disappeared without an explanation.
Ditched is a quirky, feel-good romantic
comedy which, while reading it, can make you believe that there is such a thing
as “the perfect love”. It had such a
cheesy, clichéd, typically romcom-movie ending, but it was perfect. I wouldn’t
have written it differently. I’m not a fan of romance books, so the mere fact
that I enjoyed this book so much I couldn’t put it down until I’ve devoured the
last chapter, speaks volumes about what a terrific read this is! I assure you
it is as awesome as the beautiful cover promises it would be.
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Ditched: A Love Story by Robin Mellom has
311 reviews on Goodreads. Read it here.
Robin Mellom has taught grades five through eight
and has a master's degree in education. DITCHED: A LOVE STORY is her first
novel. Her new middle grade series, THE CLASSROOM, was launched in June 2012.
She lives with her husband and son on the Central Coast of California.
The frosty chill that’s settled over Georgetown
Academy isn’t just from the winter weather—growing up in the D.C. fishbowl
isn’t for everyone, but a break from the Beltway might just restore some sanity.
Ellie Walker’s suffered through a lifetime of scandal in a
few short weeks, and now must watch her true love fall for someone else. But
will a dose of fresh New England air—and an irresistible newcomer who plays by
his own rules—provide the change of pace she so desperately needs?
Riding high after her smashing D.C. debut, Taryn Reyes
hatches a plan to cement her relationship with Gabe. But she may get more than
she bargained for when she enlists Brooks’ help.
Evan Harnett would do anything to protect her friends. But
one moment of weakness, and now she’s on the outs with both Hunter and Ellie.
Hot on the trail of a new story, she’s heartbroken to find it leads straight
back to Ellie. Can she save her friend and their friendship?
Brinley Madison’s Clinton-esque downfall was bad enough, but
between family obligations, protecting her friends, and managing local gossip,
will she be able to regain her social standing without losing her peace of mind?
Privileged kids in a posh hotel with nothing to do but scheme
and ski—and they thought D.C. was a pressure cooker? One thing’s for sure: what
happens in Vermont definitely won’t stay in Vermont.
REVIEW
I know
I’ve said it before, but I’ll happily say it again. This stunning series should
be made a tv series. It’s filled with beautiful people, rich characterization,
drama, love-triangles, betrayal, new love, scheming, and so much more. I can’t
wait to for the next book to be released. I just can’t get enough of this
excitingly addictive series and its amazing characters.
My new
favorite character, who got a lot more of the spotlight in this book than in
the previous ones, is Brooks – Brinley’s gorgeous brother. I started taking
notice of him in the previous book when he focused his attention on Taryn, but
in the third book he’s really coming to life. He might be a little pompous and
self-serving at times, but there’s an irresistible goodness to him which
attracts me like a moth to a flame. I think I’m mostly looking forward to the
next book, so I can get to read more about him (hint, hint, Jessica and Alyssa).
Again,
the authors didn’t disappointment and added loads of intrigue to each of the
four main characters’ storylines. Something I never thought of before, but
which occurred to me while reading and finding out the reason for Weston’s
departure in the middle of the school year from his previous school and what he
tried to do to Ellie, is that these kids might be privileged in ways we can
only dream to be, but their lives can get complicated and life isn’t always
fair to them. I look at Ellie’s loyalty to her mom, and Brinley’s father who
sold out her best friend’s mom, and it’s clear that the decisions these
characters have to make about their personal lives, must be in accordance to
what would benefit or what would destroy their parents’ political careers.
I
congratulate these two authors for continuing to bring us stellar characters
and a series in which readers get to walk in the shoes of the students at
Georgetown Academy, where your every move and your every decision could be
tomorrow’s front page news. The third book ended on a positive note (in my
opinion) and I’m thrilled to see where things might be heading with Brooks and
Taryn. Evan’s storyline is a little too dull for my taste, but at least I like
her and I think the authors can do a lot of exciting things with her character
to stir things up a little at GA. It would be great if she can be the good girl
who turns into the bad girl. Of course, Brinley with her straightforward
say-it-like-I-see-it personality is still my top favorite character in this
series, especially because she’s such a terrific friend to Ellie.
If I
don’t stop myself now, I’ll be gushing for another three pages. This is a
magnificent series and the writing is superb. It’s refreshing to read about an
academy where the characters don’t have any paranormal powers, but where they
have to deal with everyday situations in a smorgasbord of political maneuvers
which not only affect their own futures, but also those of their parents. It’s
real, it’s fun, it’s engaging, and it keeps you on the edge of your seat. Treat
yourself and get your hands on the entire series…now!
I
received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for
an honest, unbiased review.
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Georgetown Academy (Book 3) by Jessica
Koosed Etting and Alyssa EmbreeSchwartz has 9
reviews on Goodreads. Read it here.
Kara Magari is about to discover a beautiful world full of terrifying things—Ourea.
Kara, a college student still reeling from her mother’s recent death, has no idea the hidden world of Ourea even exists until a freak storm traps her in a sunken library. With no way out, she opens an ancient book of magic called the Grimoire and unwittingly becomes its master, which means Kara now wields the cursed book’s untamed power. Discovered by Ourea's royalty, she becomes an unwilling pawn in a generations-old conflict—a war intensified by her arrival. In this world of chilling creatures and betrayal, Kara shouldn’t trust anyone… but she’s being hunted and can’t survive on her own. She drops her guard when Braeden, a native soldier with a dark secret, vows to keep her safe. And though she doesn’t know it, her growing attraction to him may just be her undoing.
For twelve years, Braeden Drakonin has lived a lie. The Grimoire is his one chance at redemption, and it lands in his lap when Kara Magari comes into his life. Though he begins to care for this human girl, there is something he wants more. He wants the Grimoire.
Welcome to Ourea, where only the cunning survive.
REVIEW
Lichgates captivated me from the start and took me on a fantastic journey into incredible worlds with wonderful, if sometimes scary, creatures and people. If you see a flash of blue from the corner of your eye and feel a kicking sensation in your gut, know that you might have just passed from the world as you know it into the extremely different world of Ourea. This is what happens to Kara just before her life changes forever. Still grieving for her recently deceased mother and worried about her father, Kara is unprepared for the storm of action, suspense, frightening experiences and highly dangerous responsibility that is about to enter her life. Along with Braeden, heir to the Stelian throne, she embarks on a complicated mission as the new vagabond.
I found the author's world building to be easily the strongest feature of this book. What an imagination! Although she includes known mythical creatures like griffons, dragons, and centaurs, she also adds a vast selection of her own unique creations. Two headed dogs that can serve as weapons as well as transport, and a creature that can pass through solid walls with riders on its back, are just some of these magnificent beings living in the kingdoms of Ourea.
The truly bad guys, the Stelians, who seem to be into destruction, torture and control; and the soul stealing Isen make Ourea an unpleasant and extremely dangerous place to live in. The Yakona kingdoms, the Hillsidians, Ayavelians, Kirelms, and Lossians have their own problems and selfish goals. All this combined make the vagabond's mission to bring peace to the realm a very difficult one. The only beings who seem to be able to really assist her are the drenowith, shape shifting muses with some awesome powers. The question is: will they?
Kara has this to say about this torn and dangerous world:
"I'm starting to wonder if there's anything in Ourea worth saving."
The author does character development throughout the story and, at least the two main characters, Kara and Braeaden, show growth in their personalities by the end of this book. I highly recommend Lichgates to readers who want to go on a fantastic journey of beautiful but dangerous worlds. This is a thrilling five star read which you don't want to miss!
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Lichgates by S.M. Boyce has 147 reviews on Goodreads. Read it here.
S.M. Boyce is a fantasy and paranormal fiction novelist who also dabbles in contemporary fiction and comedy. She updates her blog a few times each week so that you have something to wake you up in the morning. She also has a B.A. in Creative Writing which, naturally, qualifies her to be pompous and serve you french fries.
Family Ever After: Simple Ways to Achieve Perfect Happiness in an Imperfect Family Women frustrated with their marriage and their family will find the help they need to achieve greater happiness and success in their family in the new book, Family Ever After: Simple Ways to Achieve Extraordinary Happiness with Your Ordinary Family by stay-at-home mom, blogger, and ordinary family leader Michelle H. Packard. Family Ever After uses the fairytale concept that once you find your prince charming life is happily ever after. Michelle H. Packard knows this concept, while romantic, is not realistic, and she provides a practical, poignant, funny, and moving exploration of the simple ways you can help find greater happiness and satisfaction in your marriage and family. Packard says, “While the idea of happy ever after is distorted, you can, in fact, achieve a Family Ever After.” Family Ever After brings time-tested and well-researched principles to family life to help you learn specific ways to improve your marriage and your family, whether that family is ordinary or extraordinary. Using real-world examples of best practices and helping woman readjust their media-driven perception of what happily ever after means, Family Ever After gives readers a pragmatic, helpful, and entertaining exploration of:
How happiness in marriage and family life requires a more educated, real-world perspective
How proper prioritization and defining what’s important in marriage and family is key to success;
Why conflict is part of an ordinary family experience and how to peacefully resolve it;
How to cultivate a sense of humor;
How to develop a thoughtful and sincere habit of complimenting each member of your family;
How to improve family relationships with extended family members; and
Learning how to love a family member in the way they understand and accept that love
More than another how-to-have-a-perfect-family book, Family Ever After helps you gain the understanding and the practical skills of what makes ordinary families successful. Family Ever After is an essential and beautiful resource for all women who want to put more happiness in theirs and their family’s life.
Praise "Family Ever After is a must-read for every happily married Cinderella who wonders why she’s still holding the broom." --Rachelle J. Christensen, award-winning author of Wrong Number and Caller ID "Michelle is open enough to have given readers an intimate look into her life and those close to her, allowing us to learn from both painful and sweet experiences. Her self-reflective style and meaningful insights, if applied, would clearly make a profound impact in the lives of readers." --Shawn Edgington Ph.D.
Author Michelle Packard Michelle Packard is a mother to her four very human and totally fabulous kids. Her oldest, Ella is always in charge and leads the pack with creativity and curiosity, Daniel follows with loyalty and loves tenderly, Julia is a doll and always buzzing over something beautiful, and Jackson could hunt down the last sharpie on earth to create art on your bathroom wall. She has been married ten years and is quite taken with her guy. Date night is her favorite and she dreams of weekend getaways with her man. She loves creating beauty through floral design, but apparently has no gift with living flowers (They end of upside down and pressed in books). She finds parties alluring. They beckon her to invite people over, spend way too much time preparing food for murder mystery dinners, and totally enjoy friends and family. Michelle holds a bachelors degree in Home and Family Science from Brigham Young University. She has spent a great deal of time working with children and young adults and finds her greatest joy is happy families.
Making
her grand re-entry into Portside, Rhode Island, Belinda Kittridge expected fun,
sun, and sugar cookies. Instead, she gets one jilted lover braced for round
two, an old rival on the hunt, and the murder of a former classmate and friend.
Even worse, Belinda must return to the events surrounding a tragic sailing
accident to set things right. But new possibilities emerge in the form of
security expert Bennett Tate. Between her connections and his know-how, they're
bound to catch the killer - and kick the skeletons out of the closet for good.
I've
written two mystery novels so far. My first, Dead Locked, is about Imogen Bell
who works for a team of underwater archaeologists and ends up embroiled in a
deadly treasure hunt. My second mystery, The Jester's Apprentice, is about
Philippa, a woman caught between her new husband Edric and his smoky past - and
hers.
I've
always loved mysteries, even in elementary school. My mother raised me on TV
show reruns like Murder, She Wrote, Matlock, and Magnum, P.I, and later I
picked up her Agatha Christie addiction.
However,
sometimes I just want a hot (but intelligent) guy and a strong woman bantering
for pages. Or a gripping action sequence. Or some fun sci-fi/fantasy elements.
And sometimes I want it all in the same book. So with mystery as the backbone
of my stories, I blend in romance, action, adventure, and soon sci-fi to keep
it fresh and exciting.
Why
should you take a chance on my books? Well, I write what I'm passionate about,
and I'm passionate about people and mysteries. I make my characters passionate
too: about each other, about what they're hunting, fixing, or piecing together.
Above all, I want my readers to have fun, and leave happy!
January Black Sixteen-year-old genius Matty Ducayn has never fit in on The Hill, an ordered place seriously lacking a sense of humor. After his school’s headmaster expels him for a small act of mischief, Matty’s future looks grim until King Hadrian comes to his rescue with a challenge: answer a question for a master’s diploma. More than a second chance, this means freedom. Masters can choose where they work, a rarity among Regents, and the question is simple. What was January Black? It’s a ship. Everyone knows that. Hadrian rejects that answer, though, and Matty becomes compelled by curiosity and pride to solve the puzzle. When his search for an answer turns up long-buried state secrets, Matty’s journey becomes a collision course with a deadly royal decree. He's been set up to fail, which forces him to choose. Run for his life with the challenge lost...or call the king’s bluff.
She shifted her attention from
the statue to him and began making her way through the library. As she arrived
in the almost empty corner, she followed the steel cable of Hadrian’s swing
with her eyes to where it was bolted to the ceiling and admired the canopy of a
maple tree that was painted above their heads.
“I love that,” she said softly,
before turning to him with confusion. “Why is there a swing in his library?”
“His mother missed the one she
grew up with in Dartanyan, so he made one for her,” Matty told her. “Hop on.”
She gave him an awkward grin
and took a step away. “Will it hold me?”
“The cable will hold a metric
t—” The look she gave him was one frequently made by his mother when she wanted
him to spare her whatever technical details he was spewing. “It’s incredible.”
Iris exhaled heavily, still
staring at the swing with apprehension, but climbed onto the disk that hung
from the ceiling and positioned the layers of her skirt around the cable.
“Better than the books?” she asked, crossing her legs modestly at the ankle.
“Yes,” he admitted. “Swing.”
She kicked her foot on the
ground to set the swing into motion. “It’s been a few years since I was on a
swing.”
Matty pushed her shoulder as
she swung close to him, setting her into a spin. She screamed out in surprise
and giggled like a little girl. He recalled her story from earlier that night.
Removed from school at age ten, apprenticed to a Widow Black Guild master
gardener at twelve, working full-time at sixteen, and all the while, she was
caring for her paranoid father. He felt sad at the thought of her having to
grow up so fast.
As she continued to enjoy the
swing in silence, Matty tapped a command on the tablet, and lights began
shining on the walls and the bookshelves that surrounded the swing. “Look
down.”
Iris tilted her head over her
shoulder. The movement altered her spin, slowing it slightly. She gasped in
delight at the illusion of a shimmering pool of water below her.
“Drag your foot.”
She did and laughed as her foot
created a disturbance across the surface. She kicked her foot up, and the
illusion responded by creating dozens of round ripples where “drops” had
fallen.
Matty tapped the tablet, and
this time, her foot left a mark through virtual sand. Iris dragged her foot a
second time and a third. He changed a setting, and her foot cut through the
long grasses of a glade. As he switched between dozens of scenes, she swung
across daisies and wheat fields, over the tops of evergreen forests. She
floated over clouds and stars.
Finally, Iris stopped the swing
and looked down as she hovered thousands of feet over Aventine, gripping the
steel cable tighter as if she felt she were really up that high. He tapped the
tablet to call up the final theme, the one he really wanted to show her.
The high altitude view of
Aventine bloomed into thousands of purple and yellow irises. She gaped in awe
as the two-dimensional scene became a freestanding holograph growing out of the
floor. He activated the setting for sound, and the room was filled with the
babble of water. Another setting activated fans in wall vents, mimicking a cool
breeze. He selected a third setting, and the fragrances of iris blooms, dirt,
and country air blew past them. Her eyes widen more in amazement with every
added detail.
Matty sat down on the floor and
set the tablet down. Unlike the two-dimensional scenes, the holographic flowers
didn’t respond correctly to movement or the presence of mass, the result of
Hadrian walking away from the programming when his mother died.
“This is in the Ayame River
valley, near my grandfather’s ranch in Dartanyan.” The rest really was
Hadrian’s story to tell, Matty decided.
Iris twisted her foot on the
ground to turn the swing. “This is the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. Thank
you.”
“You’re welcome,” he said
softly, looking up at the glow on her face. “And I’m sorry about my father’s
behavior at dinner. Mine as well.”
“I’m a Widow Black contractor,
Matty. Dating his son. The commandant had to ask those questions.”
Matty didn’t think he could be
so gracious in her place. “He shouldn’t have asked you at the dinner table.”
“Which is why he did,” she
said.
He realized what she had said
just before. “Wait. We’re dating?”
She asked nervously, “Aren’t
we?”
He hoped the grin on his face
wasn’t as grotesque as it felt. “I wasn’t sure.”
“Seriously, Matty! I’m the one
who should be nervous.” He didn’t understand and looked at her sideways.
“You’re rich. You’re cute. You know about my crazy—”
“Cute?” he squawked.
“Oh my God!” she scoffed. She
stopped the swing so she could give him her full attention. “No one is this
insecure.”
“And you must be a blind
actress,” he said. She restarted the swing. “It is quite convenient that I find
a printed Braille book and a girl who can actually read Braille at the same
time.”
“Except I can’t read it.”
“You know what I mean.”
She glanced over her shoulder
at him as the swing twisted and said, “You may ask anyone who knows me. The
only acting skill I have is to make myself invisible.”
“That’s quite a trick,” Matty
said. “I’d like to see that.”
She lowered her arm to pass her
hand through the holographic irises. “I mean that I can pass unnoticed when I
want.”
“I don’t believe you,” he said,
shaking his head. “I can’t imagine looking in your direction and seeing
anything but you.”
Praise Refreshingly intelligent and loads of fun! I lost a few hours as I read this book. It's a Young Adult novel that is refreshingly and astonishingly intelligent, and the love story is perfectly played out. ~Christine Ashworth, Amazon Review The mystery was intriguing - I loved how Wendy Russo weaved in all her secrets throughout the book, how she incorporated just enough to keep you reading, while never actually divulging much of anything. I was guessing for most of it and that's pretty hard to make me do. ~Julie, Clean Teen Reads Wendy Russo has created a masterpiece. ~Ivan Amberlake, Author
Book Trailer
Author Wendy S. Russo Wendy S. Russo got her start writing in the sixth grade. That story involved a talisman with crystals that had to be found and assembled before bad things happened, and dialog that read like classroom roll call. Since then, she’s majored in journalism (for one semester), published poetry, taken a course on short novels, and watched most everything ever filmed by Quentin Tarantino. A Wyoming native transplanted in Baton Rouge, Wendy works for Louisiana State University as an IT analyst. She’s a wife, a mom, a Tiger, a Who Dat, and she falls asleep on her couch at 8:30 on weeknights.
Blog Tour Giveaway $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 5/8/13 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. a Rafflecopter giveaway