Larissa M. Hinton Shares Her Newest 'Bloom'

When did you first start writing?

I started writing at the ripe age of 12. At first, I wrote poems because of my lovely English teacher decided that we should write poems and from then on, I fell in love with poetry. The writing bug really bit me a year later when the movie of Nickelodeon movie, Clock Stoppers came out. I thought the movie was going to be horrible, so I decided that I would write a novel that would be better than the movie. Needless to say, my book wasn't as good as the move but I didn't care. I love writing and nothing else mattered. Thus my obsession with writing begun.

What music do you listen to when you write?

Actually, I don't listen to music when I write. The reason I don't listen to music is because it distracts me from writing. My favorite genre is electronic dance. So every time I listen to it (especially Cascada or Rhianna's Please Don't Stop the Music) I want to dance instead of write. So it's more of a hindrance instead of a help. 

 Do you have any hidden talents?

Apparently, I have the talent of weaving my hair. Everywhere I go people compliment me on my hair and they are so shocked to know that I did it myself. You should see their faces, "You did THAT yourself?" Yeah, of course. You know how expensive it is to get kinky twists done? Over a hundred dollars easy, especially with all of the hair weave I did and how long it is. I'll give you a hint: The hair is longer than you think! I constantly sit on my hair, lol since I didn't originally intend for my hair to be this long when I started out . . . But that's a whole different story.

The Apocalypse Gene: Dystopian meets Matrix meets Mythology

The Apocalypse Gene by Suki Michelle

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I actually gave this book 3½♥'s, but rounded up for the sake of GoodReads.

This book seems to marry dystopian future Chicago, science fiction, mythology, and a healthy dose of Matrix.

Overview
Olivya is an African-American teenage living in a future cancer-plagued Chicago.  As the global pandemic rages, Olivya and her mother make ends meet by offering hospice care for what she calls GAD's (Good-As-Dead's.)  The streets of Chicago are nearly deserted; gangs and death running rampant. People rely on the internet for all forms of social interaction, including school for Olivya. Among the virtual halls of her school is nearly the only place she can escape her gift, and sometimes curse, Olivya can see auras. Her vision allows her to see emotions, intentions, and the taint of plague. After rebelling against her mother's decision to start offering essentially medically induced suicides, she sneaks out for a first real-life meeting with her "hot" friend, Mikah, that she met at holo school. Little does she know of just how different, and similar Mikah turns out to be. Can her gift, and Mikah's origins combine to not only learn the truth of the plague but also be the key to stopping it?

Book Tag x2- I'm REALLY IT!

Book Tag Rules:

1. You must post the rules.

2. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post and then create ten new questions to ask the people that you have tagged.

3. Tag eleven people and link to them on your post.

4. Let them know you've tagged them!

Questions from Karla @ Book-Addict:

1.- What is your Favorite book ever?

I don't think I can choose just one... there are just so many wonderful books out there!  I can try to limit myself to only listing two of my favorite series (but these still don't fully represent all my favorites...)


♦A Fistful of Charms by Kim Harrison (part of the Hollows series) and 
♦White Night by Jim Butcher (part of the Dresden Files)

2.- If you had to choose a character of one book to meet in real life, who would it be?

So many choices... at the moment, I would like to meet Carter from the Georgina Kincaid series.  How better can it get than a hot mess of an angel that smokes, drinks, and is best friends with a demon?  It shouldn't be boring, at least.


3.- If a thief entered your house to steal your library, what book would you try to save and why?

Well, seeing as my first choice actually was stolen (The Tale of the Body Thief signed by Anne Rice) the next book that I would try to save is Personal Demon signed by Kelley Armstrong (made out to me!)

P.A. Lupton is BOUND to give us some answers!

Bound by Blood by P.A. Lupton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am just SO EXCITED that I was able to talk P.A. Lupton, author of Bound by Blood (Book One of the Garner Witch Series) into granting me my very first interview for my blog!  If you have not yet had the pleasure of reading her book, it is only $0.99 at Amazon (see link at bottom of article.)  At that price, it is an absolute steal for the amount of entertainment you will get out of it!  And with no further ado.....

First of all, a little background on P.A. Lupton from her own website.  For a link to her website, please see the bottom of the interview.  

Bio Page

Ever since I can remember I’ve had an addiction to books, and from the moment I picked up my first Anne Rice novel, I was hooked on the paranormal. The compelling lure of the paranormal world is irresistible. It is a world where anything and everything is possible, and the boundaries of humanity need not apply. A world in which life spans are measured by centuries and millennia, rather than decades, and a woman can possess inhuman strengths and kick major ass, yet still retain her innate femininity.

Why Vampires? They are the ultimate bad boys.

Women love a dangerous man, and what could be more dangerous than a vampire. Vampires embody everything we crave about the stereotypical bad boy. They exude confidence and sensuality. They are exciting, mysterious, and the epitome of masculine perfection—strong, youthful, and indescribably gorgeous. What’s not to love?
My first novel, Bound by Blood, combines my two favorite paranormal legends: witches and vampires—with a little romance thrown into the mix. I hope you enjoy it.

P.A. Lupton is BOUND to give us the dish on the Garner Witch Series!

1. So, I understand being a writer is not your "day job". What made you take a chance on your dream and get Bound by Blood published?

I wasn’t sure when I started writing if I would ever attempt to publish the book. At first I just wrote something I would want to read. Then I let a few friends read the story and they all encouraged me to publish it.

2. For all other aspiring writers, how hard was the publication process and do you have any advice for other would-be authors?

Publishing my book wasn’t difficult, in fact it was easier than I expected. However, I found finding a good editor was the hardest part. The only advice I would offer other writers is don’t ever give up. If you want to be a writer just keep working at it.

3. I'm sure many of the readers loved Bound by Blood want to know- when is the next book in the Garner Witch series coming out?

I am hoping to have it ready by March but it really depends on how the editing goes.

4. Were any of your characters inspired by, even in part, anyone in particular?

None of my characters were inspired by one person in particular. However, the heroine Brianna I would say was inspired by many of my favorite female heroines. I especially love kick ass women like Buffy, Cat from Night Huntress, Mercy Thompson, and Cyn from Vampires in America. Her character wasn’t inspired specifically from any of those women, but I definitely wanted similar character traits, I especially wanted her to kick ass like Buffy.

5. Do you have a favorite character from Garner Witch, or one that you especially enjoyed writing?

All of my characters feel real to me. They’re like my babies and I can’t choose one that I love more than the rest. I enjoyed writing about all of them.

6. Do you have a 'set' number of books planned for the Garner Witch series?

Not really. I have the second book almost completed and the outline for a third. After that I was toying with the idea of writing about some of the secondary characters like Morrison and Hayley.

Beg For Mercy

Beg for Mercy by Shannon Dermott

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Overview

Mercy is your average teenager, that is, if you are a succubus.  She cannot even kiss a boy without possibly killing him.  Finding herself at a party with the "elite" crowd from school with her best friend she is suddenly thrust into a game of spin the bottle... and just guess where the bottle lands.  This one juvenile, innocuous game played by teenagers is the domino that seems to really stir up the fates, and Mercy's usual MO.  No boys, no kissing, and predilection for using the SAT word-of-the-day app... all this is suddenly turned on its head.  Mercy finds herself not just in a love triangle....

What I Thought

You can't tell but I am fist-pumping the air over this book!  This displays EVERYTHING I love about YA books.  I love the angst... and how much more angst can you get than a budding teenage girl filled with hormones, and a succubus that wants to suck the life out of every boy she finds herself attracted to.  And there is not just a love triangle, but a "love hexagon" as I've seen Shannon put it.  It was such an interesting take on a commonly used literary device.  And there was plenty of "boy eye candy" to go around.  I even loved the pattern of SAT words preceding the chapters and looking for the use of that word in the chapter.  You get a boost to your vocabulary just by reading this book! 

Immortal Prophecy.... Innocent yet full of Scottish alpha man candy...

Immortal Prophecy by Samantha  Adams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


First, I want to give a big thank you to Samantha Adams and Kay Fry for allowing me to read and review their book.  I was under no obligation to give it a good review...

Luckily for me, this is an engaging book.  Alessandra is a refreshingly strong heroine, a private detective that has not let her past emotional trauma get in her way. James is also a drool-worthy hero and Scottish to boot.

After visiting a fortune teller as a teenager she gets a dire prediction that quickly blooms into a painful reality.  Fast forward 5 years, and she is marked by her experience, but still thriving.  Until her destiny crashes into her normal life, leaving everything off kilter in it's wake.  Can Alessandra (Ally) accept her crazy new path in the world, and her connection with the mysterious James.  A Scottish alpha man, practically a caveman in his thinking when it comes to Ally.  A race hangs in the balance, will Ally master her fate and figure out the prophecy to save us all?

The Legacy of Kilkenny

The Legacy of Kilkenny by Devyn Dawson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First of all, I would like to thank Devyn Dawson for allowing the R2R program to review her book. I always appreciate the chance to read and review a book.

After initially looking at a few reviews to determine if I should read it, I found many glowing comments; they lead me to really think I would like this book. Unfortunately, that was not the case. The overall premise was interesting, and promising. But for me the formatting, and point of view between Pru and Abel ended up preventing me from really investing myself into the characters.

I found that the book tells the reader the story instead of showing it. Rather than painting a picture with words to show a plump, juicy, red apple with beads of cool moisture sweating out of it's sweet flesh. It would rather just have a character say, 'Give me an apple.' I didn't have the sense of being lead into the story, instead I felt like flash boards of high points were being sped through so quickly I got dizzy. The two main characters go from just meeting on one page, and BFF's the next. Granted, there was a passage of time, but many relationship building parts of the story were absent. I also felt like there was little conflict, especially in regard to the acceptance on Abe's part with Pru's "furry" nature at first. Many situations, like that one felt forced, unnatural and unbelievable.