Author Spotlight: Rebecca Maizel & Giveaway!

Please welcome Rebecca Maizel. 

Author of Infinite Days!

1) Could you tell us a bit about yourself.

Rebecca: I'm Rebecca. I'm from Rhode Island though I was a NYC bartender for almost six years. I am a YA book fanatic. I think my dog Louie is a person. I talk to him like he's real. Oh, and I'm the author of Infinite Days, the first book in the Vampire Queen trilogy.

2) What was your inspiration for writing Infinite Days?

Rebecca: I started to free write one day. I literally sat down, started writing and Lenah’s voice came through, I let her tell the story and 8 months later, I had a draft of Infinite Days. I wish this story were more exciting. I wish I could say that I had a vision! Or a dream! But no...I was in a dark library writing. 

3) Were there any personal experiences that went in to Infinite Days?  

Rebecca: I was a bartender for a long time. I lived my life at night - I also bartended through my 20s. Maybe there are some unconscious personal things in there. But no, I've never been a 592 year old vampire on the run from a dangerous coven :)

 4) What was your inspiration for Lenah's character, is she a purely made up character or is she based on anyone? 

Rebecca: She is most definitely a made up character. I think she's an amalgamation really of a lot of my past, my experiences and my regrets. 

5)How many books do you plan to have in your Infinite Days series?

Rebecca: Three :)

 6) What was your inspiration for the cover of  Infinite Days?

Rebecca: Most of the time, especially with a teen book, an author has very little say in the design and execution of the cover. There are marketing teams and designers who make the covers and usually they designs are run by you (the author). It's not really a collaborative process.

7) What do you plan on doing in the future?

Rebecca: I am currently writing a realistic novel set on Cape Cod but I have a couple projects up my sleeve. 

8) What are you reading right now?

Rebecca: The Mockingbirds - (ARC) by Daisy Whitney (I am loving it so far)

Nightshade (ARC)  - by Andrea Cremer - but I'm only on page 2. :)

9) Who are a few of your favorite authors?

Rebecca: I love Lauren Kate - I think she's great. Fallen was a fun read and I really admired her writing style. I also adore Sophie Jordan's writing. Firelight is her new book coming out, I believe in September. 

 10) Do you write to music? Whats your favorite?

Rebecca: I do write to music! Usually it is music with no lyrics - classical or soundtracks. I am easily distracted. But in terms of bands, etc.? I love The National, Ryan Adams, The Doors and I admit, Taylor Swift! :)

Thanks Rebecca for such an awesome interview!!

Check out Rebecca's website HERE!

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Want to win a copy of Infinite Days?

Fill out this form!
Ends November 1, 2010
Open International! 

Edit: Contest Closed!

Character Interview: Lil from Awakened & Giveaway!

Please Welcome Lil from Awakened by Ednah Walters!

Steph:  Lil, thanks for stopping by.
Lil (takes a seat across from Steph and smiles):  I hope she doesn’t ask personal questions.  I might have to lie and I suck at it.  
I’m happy to be here.
Steph:  So, let’s start.  Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Lil (sighs):  I should have known she’d start with person Qs.  
I’m just an ordinary girl with ordinary teen issues and a little extra responsibility than most.
Steph (laughs):  Ordinary teen issues?  A little extra responsibility?  You fight demons.  That’s huge.
Lil (makes a face):  Okay, fighting demons is big, but I have the training and my abilities make my job a little easier.  But I do have teen issues.  I worry about my boyfriend, school, my friends, popular girls who make my life difficult.    
Steph:  You’re talking about—?
Lil (interrupts): No names, please.
Steph (smiles):  I understand.  She spends a lot of time online and might read my blog.  Let’s talk about your duties as a Guardian.  What are some pros and con's of being a Guardian?

Lil:  Pros…hmmm.  The big ones are, we stop demons from buying and owning human souls, and our people get back their glory.  When angels, our ancestors, fell and were sent to Tartarus, they lost their glory.  As a result, we were born without souls.  Saving humanity helps us get them back.  
Having abilities is also a great pro.  I can have lunch at a beach in Florida or Caribbean and make it back for my sixth hour class without breaking a sweat.  Also, we don’t worry about money, because the High Council provides us with large bank accounts as soon as we join the Guardianship program.  
Cons…(Lil grimaces)…we fight demons.  Since we once belong to the same race, they have abilities like us, so when fighting, things can get pretty sticky.


Steph:  Do you find it hard to balance your human life (school, friends) with your Guardian life?
Lil (frowns):  Very.  I try to keep the two lives separate, but at times it is not easy.  I’ve tried not to use my powers and meddle in other students’ lives when I read their thoughts.  You see, we’re not supposed to make choices for people because they have free will, but I’ve slipped and helped a few.  I can’t help it.  
I also worry that my human friends might catch me using my powers.  If they do, they might totally freak out.  (Shrugs) Then I’d have to erase their memory.
Steph (leans forward, her eyes wide):  Can you really do that?  Erase memories?  
Lil (winces):  Oops, wasn’t supposed to say that. Forget you asked me that question.  In fact, forget what I said after I shrugged.

Steph (nods, totally unaware that I zapped her):  I think they might find your background cool once they stop freaking out.  I know I do.  Let’s talk about Bran.  Tell us about him? 
Lil:  Oh no.  My human friends always want to know stuff about Bran too.  Are all girls just curious or was their curiosity because of Bran?   
Steph:  Uh, Lil?  
Lil (sighs):  He’s the best boyfriend in the world.
Steph:  Do you do anything cool together?
Lil (smiles dreamily):  All the time.  We teleport to fun places for lunch or dinner, just the two of us.  At times we don’t have reservation, but we usually find a way around it.
Steph:  You mentioned before that you have boy issues. Why?  He’s completely in love with  you.  I mean there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for you.
Lil (still smiling):  I know, but he’s three years older and more experienced than I am, so I worry that, you know, I might bore him. 
Steph (shakes her head):  From what I read in Awakened, I doubt it.  Can I ask you a couple more questions about him?
Lil (grimaces):  I don’t mind, but there’re certain things I can’t discuss.
Steph:  That’s okay.  Can you tell us what attracted you to him?  
Lil (giggles, remembering their first meeting):  His eyes.  I call them emerald green.  Then there’s his smile.  He has the most beautiful smile in the world.  And he’s very protective of me.  At times, he can be a bit overprotective.  That drives me nuts.
Steph:  I’m sure he does.  What's one of your favorite memories from your childhood? What about with Bran?

Lil:  Watching my grandfather wow his audience in the circus.  Those will stay with me forever, even though I now know they weren’t an act.  Bran?  Well, the first time I saw his wings.  He took my breath away.  He still does.
Steph:  Oooh, that’s sweet.  Do you think he can show them to me if we meet?
Lil (shakes her head).  He has to remove his shirt to do it unless he’s wearing special shirts.  No way was he undressing in front of another girl. Absolutely not. 
Of course.  I’ll ask him.
Steph:  Thank you.  What’s the most romantic thing he's ever done for you?
Lil (blushing):  On our first date when he…you’ve read Awakened, so there’s no need to repeat it.  Everything he did that evening was romantic
Steph:  Can you dish any dirt about him. 
Lil (giggles):  No.
Steph:  Come on.  Just one.
Lil:  He’ll kill me for saying this.  He’s very ticklish.  
Steph (leans forward):  Is he a good kisser?
Lil (blushing):  The best.  The only man I ever want to kiss.  Now forget you asked that question.  Sheesh, she’s so nosey.

Steph (unaware she’s been zapped again, consults her notes):  How is your relationship going with the other trainees? Do you still train with them?
Lil (shrugs):  Remy and Sykes are like my brothers.  Izzy can be so sweet one day and totally horrid the next.  Kim is a queen bee, a witch with the letter B.  But we are a team.  During a battle, we were perfectly together.  I do train with them, but only twice a week.  I have to take extra lessons to master the dagger.
Steph:  What's your favorite part of your new life?
Lil:  Hanging out and pretending to be a normal teenager.  That’s what Bran and I do sometimes when we’re together or away from the valley.  We pretend we’re just normal teens in love.  No worrying about demons or hunting.  Also, I love doing stuff with my human friends.  They treat me like one of them, which is cool.
Steph:  Your Grampa raised you in the dark. Is that normal for all Guardians?
Lil:  No, most Guardians are raised in Xenith, the Guardian world, and only come to earth at the age of sixteen after it’s clear they have special abilities.  My case is different because my grandmother was human.  There are Nephlings out there like me or like my mother who was half human and half-Guardian.  You might even know some.  Even you might be one.  One day you’re happy being a teenager, then bam, you start hearing voices or moving things with your mind. (Stands) I really need to leave now.  We’re hunting tonight and I must head to HQ to grab my weapons.
Steph (eyes wide):  Can you allow people to watch you hunt?
Lil:  Sure, but then I’ll have to kill you

Steph (blinks):  Uh…uh….
Lil (laughs):  I’m kidding.  We use angelic glamour, so humans don’t see us fight.
Steph (blows out air in relief):  Phew, you had me worried.  Just one more thing.  Can you tell us what's next for the Guardians or have you had any word when Ednah might be done with the next installment?
Lil (standing up):  Our next adventure, Betrayed, will be out next year, I believe.  Summer or fall.  Ednah should know by end of the year.  As for the Guardians, so many things are happening.  Some good, some bad.  I really have to go now.  Thanks for the interview (teleports).





* Images are of Ednah Walters dream cast of Awakened and were found using Google images.

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Giveaway!!!

Thanks to the gracious donation of Ednah Walters, Book Junky is giving away a few Awakened prizes!

Here is whats up for grabs:

2 winners will receive:

A Guardian Legacy Tee-shirt ( one med and one large)

A Guardian Legacy pen

A signed Awakened bookmark

How to enter?

Fill out this FORM!

Giveaway is open Internationally. Ends November 1, 2010. Good luck and thanks for visiting Book Junky!

Edit: Contest Closed!

Review: The Strangers Outside

Vanessa Morgan
September 6, 2010
28 pages
eBook


"Suddenly, she felt overwhelmed with a sudden sense of danger, as if she was being watch. She spun around to glance over her shoulder, not knowing what to expect, but nothing was there."


Two sisters, Jennifer and Louise, return to their remote holiday cabin after a day at the seaside. But little do they know they're being surrounded. Shortly after their arrival, the girls will come face to face with THE STRANGERS OUTSIDE. When the assailants make their intentions known, things take a shockingly terrible turn and an intense battle for survival will begin.

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Have you ever been home alone and felt like you were being watched? Usually it is just your mind playing tricks on you. Well in the case of Strangers Outside, its no trick.

Jenn and Louise are two sisters just trying to have a nice night out when they are stalked and attacked. 

I really liked the idea of The Strangers Outside. It explored a fear that everyone has had and made it into something more. I really enjoyed the creepy-ness of this book and the unique story. 

I do wish the story was a bit longer. With only 28 pages the characters were undeveloped and the plot was a bit rushed. I would have loved to read a longer story with more details.

Overall I give it 3 Hoots.  As far as short stories go, The Strangers Outside was a scary story that was a good light read! Great for a quick Halloween read! 

Waiting on Wednesday: The Gathering

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by
Jill @ Breaking The Spine

that spotlights upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating!

This weeks can't wait for book is: 

Maya lives in a small medical-research town on Vancouver Island. How small? You can’t find it on the map. It has less than two-hundred people, and her school has only sixty-eight students—for every grade from kindergarten to twelve.

Now, strange things are happening in this claustrophobic town, and Maya's determined to get to the bottom of them. First, the captain of the swim team drowns mysteriously in the middle of a calm lake. A year later, mountain lions start appearing around Maya's home, and they won’t go away. Her best friend, Daniel, starts getting negative vibes from certain people and things. It doesn't help that the new bad boy in town, Rafe, has a dangerous secret—and he's interested in one special part of Maya's anatomy: Her paw-print birthmark.

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I can't wait for this series. I absolutely loved Armstrong's Darkest Powers series and The Gathering is the same idea with a whole new cast. I am literally counting down the days for this one! 

The Gathering comes out April 12, 2011. Make sure to put it on your TBR list! Make sure to check out Kelley Armstrong's website HERE!

What are you waiting for?

Spooktacular Giveaway!!!

 

Welcome to the Spooktacular Blog hop!

I love Halloween and thought this was a great idea. There are quite a few great giveaways so make sure to check them out below! For my giveaway I wanted to do a Halloween inspired prize, you know tis the season! So you wanna know what's up for grabs? Well sure you do!

One lucky winner will receive:

A brand spanking new copy of Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

An ARC of Karma Bites by Stacy Kramer, Valerie Thomas

A super cool holographic owl notebook

A giant Halloween pencil complete with giant sharpener

A ghost key chain with blue blinky eyes

A pair of Halloween socks

A 3pk of Pop Rocks (yum)
A bunch of swag (some signed)


Pretty great stuff huh? Yeah I thought so! What do you have to do to enter you ask?
Well its pretty simple... 

1) Be a follower! (Hahaha, my blog, my rules!)

2) Fill out this FORM!

Thats it. Good luck and have a 

Happy Halloween!!

Edit: Contest Closed!

In My Mailbox (6)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren

So this week I got some pretty great books.

I bought:

Received from Publisher or Author for my honest review:

Received for my birthday!

And look, I got a Nook... I can't wait to start reading all my nook books!

That's whats in My Mailbox... Whats in yours?

Winners!!!!

Winner of the Awakened giveaway is

Adrianna T

Winner of A Blue So Dark is:

Theresa M

Congrats to the winners.

*I have sent an email to both of you. Make sure you respond within 48 hours!

Blog Award!

Alright my lovelies I haven't given out one of my awards in a while, so I figured I would hand a few out! I wanted to give one to a few new blogs I have come across and also a few of my favorites! So here it goes!

Lisa @ A Life Bound By Books
Kristina @ Frazzled Book Nommer
Maidenveil @ Musings of a Happy Reader

Rules of this award:

1) Tell your readers 3 things they don't know about you.
2) Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them.
3) Give the award to 3 of your favorite blogs!

Have fun and Happy Blogging!

Do Judge a Book by its Cover (10)

"Do" judge a book by its cover is a weekly meme hosted here. Have you ever picked up a book because of its cover? Of course you have. Well here we get to look at some of the outstanding covers that are coming out soon! To participate, just link back here and grab the pic, and let everyone know what your favorite cover of the week is!

 This weeks fantastic cover is:

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone—one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship—tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn’t do something soon, her parents will be next.


Now, Amy must race to unlock Godspeed’s hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there’s only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

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My Thoughts: I love Astronomy, so when I saw this cover I fell in love with it. I love the colors and the faces are so neat the way they are blacked out! Great cover and I can't  to read Across The Universe.

Across the Universe comes out January 11, 2011

Review: Fallen

Lauren Kate Hardcover,
 Random House Children's Books
464 Pages

December 08, 2009

"Trust is a careless pursuit at best. 

At worst, it's a good way to get yourself killed."


There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori. Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword and Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move. Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret... even if it kills her. (Borders.com)

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So I must say the cover of this book drew me in. I didn't know anything about it but grabbed it of the shelf and bought it. Way to go me! I love this book. .
Though this book is not fast paced, action packed throughout, It was a book that kept me very interested. Some review that I have read said it was a bit slow, and while I agree, it was one of the things I enjoyed about Fallen! You really got to know the characters and the story before you got pushed into the drama of the story. 


I love Luce, she comes in with a past which she feels very guilty about. She is at a new school, and though she wants to seem normal, there is no way its happening. She is a quiet girl who just wants to take it one day at a time. I really liked her humbleness. I really liked the fact that her past, and the reason she was sent to Swards & Crosses is unknown to us at first, it was nice to have to wonder about that for a while. 

There is plenty of supporting characters in Fallen that I adore, Penn is a very sweet girl who only wants to help Luce out. She becomes a very good friend and is very likable. Arianne is one of my favorite characters. She is funny, sassy, a bit crazy but I loved reading her. She reminds me of myself at times with her raw sense of humor. 


Although there is a love triangle aspect of Fallen, it is different then most. Cam is funny, alluring, gorgeous, and  

very sweet. He takes to Luce almost instantly. She is drawn to him at first for the sake that he is paying attention to her. She comes to find that he is a really likable guy who may really like her. Then there is Daniel, the guy she saw from across the courtyard who gave her a hot yearning feeling. She know nothing about him but she wanted him. Daniel did not return the feelings, he was mean and always avoided Luce at every chance he got. But there was more to Daniel then meets the eye. 


As Luce and Penn do some research about the mysterious Daniel, they come across many interesting and confusing things. Looking for clues into his past, Luce comes to terms with her own feelings for both Cam and Daniel. As she struggles with her own past, the frightening shadows that are always lurking, and the growing attraction to two completely different guys, Luce is thrust into a world she never knew existed... or did she?


Overall I give Fallen 4+ Hoots. Lauren Kate wrote a beautiful story with everything you would want in a book, dark humor, unexpected betrayal and edge of your seat plot twists. Fallen is a book that I have really "fallen" for..haha.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Near Witch

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking The Spine

that spotlights upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating!

This weeks can't wait for book is:

* This is the final cover!

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

There are no strangers in the town of Near.

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life. But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.

The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.

Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab’s debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won’t soon forget.

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The Near Witch looks like a great book with an original idea. Coming out August 11, 2011, The Near Witch is one book I can't wait to get my hands on! 

Author Spotlight: Holly Schindler & Giveaway!

Please welcome Holly Schindler

Author of A Blue So Dark!

1) Could you tell us a bit about yourself?

Holly: I’m a lifelong literature nut. A junkie for short stories, poems, novels…In fact, after receiving my master’s degree, I chucked the idea of full-time employment in favor of full-time pursuit of a writing career. Wasn’t easy—took seven and a half years to ink the first contract. But I wouldn’t trade the years I spent in the trenches for anything…

2) What was the inspiration for writing A BLUE SO DARK?

Holly: As A BLUE SO DARK opens, fifteen-year-old Aura Ambrose struggles to hide a secret. Her mother, a talented artist and art teacher, is slowly being consumed by schizophrenia, and Aura has been her sole caretaker ever since Aura's dad left them. Convinced that “creative” equals crazy, Aura shuns her own artistic talent. But as her mother sinks deeper into the darkness of mental illness, the hunger for a creative outlet draws Aura toward the depths of her imagination. Just as desperation threatens to swallow her whole, Aura discovers that art, love, and family are profoundly linked—and together may offer an escape from her fears.

I’ve just always been interested in creativity—I've always wondered why some people BREATHE creative ideas, while others could never, in their entire lives, ever get inspired to pick up a paintbrush. A BLUE SO DARK allowed me to explore one possible source of creativity—the idea that madness and creativity are somehow linked.

4) Was Aura’s character based on anyone or was she a purely made up character?

Holly: She’s made up. In a lot of respects, her voice sounds an awful lot like my own—her humor, her observations…it all sounds like the voice running through my head.


…I’ve gotten this question a lot lately…I think that once readers have invested in a book and followed a character for several hundred pages, they really want to know that the character exists in some way out in the real world. (Bloggers have even wanted to know if I grew up with a schizophrenic mother—I didn’t, but Mom and I both get a kick out of the question, because she was a psych major in college!) Honestly, though, my characters are all fictional. None of them are out there walking around in the real world—not Aura, and not any of the minor characters, either. They only place they’ve ever walked around is in my mind.

5) Do you plan on having A BLUE SO DARK as a stand alone novel or part of a series?

Holly: The ending isn’t really one of those tied-up-in-a-bow, everything’s resolved kind of endings…buuuut…when I wrote it, I did intend for it to stand on its own.

6) What was your inspiration for the cover of A BLUE SO DARK?

Holly: Actually, Flux took care of the cover...I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it. Since the book was acquired under the title THE OCEAN FLOOR, one thing I've always really loved about the cover is the way the title and my name are positioned down lower...sort of looks like the lettering's settled to the ocean floor, doesn't it?

7) Do you like to write to music? What kind?

Holly: Writing to music's tough for me...I'm a music FANATIC, and have loved everything from metal to bluegrass...I can't really listen to music passively. As soon as the radio's on, I start giving all my attention to what I'm listening to, rather than what I'm writing. Even if I've heard a song three million times, and know all the words and chord progressions by heart. When music's playing, I'm singing instead of working!

8) What do you plan on doing in the future?

Holly: My first YA romance is set to release on March 1, 2011! PLAYING HURT centers on two former athletes: Chelsea Keyes, a basketball star whose promising career has been catastrophically snipped short by a horrific accident on the court, and Clint Morgan, an ex-hockey player who gave up his much-loved sport following his own game-related tragedy.


Chelsea meets Clint (who’s working as a resort fishing guide) soon after arriving with her family for a summer vacation in Lake of the Woods , Minnesota . Sparks fly, igniting the pages, even though Chelsea has a boyfriend back home in Missouri…and even though Clint has sworn never to put himself in the position to be hurt emotionally again.

9) Who are you reading right now?

Holly: I usually have a hundred books-in-progress stacked beside the couch. As far as YA goes, right now I’m reading Dessen’s LOCK AND KEY, some Maggie Stiefvater, Suzanne Collins…

10) Who are a few of your favorite authors?

Holly: My tastes run the absolute gamut…romance, YA, adventure, horror, mystery…as a former literature major, I also love the classics (adore Jane Austen). As a Missouri-based author, I have a fondness for Twain and Laura Ingalls Wilder. But narrowing it down to all-time favorites is absolutely impossible…I have NEW favorites every time I leave the library or bookstore…

11) Anything you want to add?

Holly: I  want to invite readers over to my blog: hollyschindler.blogspot.com. One of the best parts of having a book on store shelves is that it's allowed me to meet fellow bloggers and book fanatics! I’m also constantly posting updates and writing news on my blog…and I’m now featuring a flash fiction challenge that will run through December. One lucky winner will receive a prize in time for the holidays

Want to win a copy of  A Blue So Dark and a signed bookmark?

Enter HERE!

Open International!

giveaway open until 10/22

Edit: Contest Closed!