Celebrating Debutantes 2017: The Gravedigger's Son by Patrick Moody

Hi guys! I hope you're enjoying Father's Day so far - to the ones with countries celebrating it this Sunday, at least. So when I first started blogging, my genre was paranormal. I read everything paranormal - vampires, werewolves, ghosts, etc. Currently, I am swimming in a fantasy ocean. It is refreshing to encounter an MG paranormal book that is rooted in the traditional act of burying the dead and creating this story.

Before we start with that, I'd like to remind you that we have several giveaways on going both in Fragments of Life and in Blackplume. Please click the event button on the right sidebar and you'll be directed to the list of features and giveaways!

Today, Patrick is going to show you his playlist for The Gravedigger's Son and briefly explain each song and how it is related to the book. Hope you enjoy the music! I like Deep in the Woods!



The Bats-"Boogeyman": This song is basically the theme to the entire story. Playful, poppy, and insightful, with just a hint of spookiness. The boogeyman is coming for you...or is it all in your head?

Calamine-"Horse and Carriage": Perfectly sums up the relationship between Ian, the MC, and Fiona, his best friend. They understand one another's personal struggles, and both try to push the other to achieve their dreams.

Mac Demarco-"Blue Boy": While Calamine's "Horse and Carriage" is an uplifting, hopeful song, Demarco's "Blue Boy" is a more accurate portrayal of Ian's personality. Unsure of himself and more than a little blue. But what eleven year old Gravedigger in training isn't?

Men at Work-"Overkill": "Ghosts appear and fade away." I feel like Men at Work captured a very specific emotion, here: the anxiety we all feel fretting about the future, while constantly replaying events from our past. It's a strange middle ground that stops us from enjoying the present. For Ian, this is all too common...constantly worrying about his path in life, trying to break ancient tradition and carve out his own future. Every choice is difficult. The weight of our own history can be a crippling thing.

My Morning Jacket-"Only Memories Remain": This haunting, melancholy tune about love and loss is a perfect fit for Ian's father, Isaac. The current Gravedigger of House Fossor is trapped in the past, forever brooding and mourning the loss of his wife, taken too soon by an evil magic.

Tennis-"Deep in the Woods": Something is lurking in the woods bordering the cemetery. Ian reluctantly enters. What will he and Fiona find? Rumor has it, a coven of dark-magic witches live somewhere in the depths of the forest, waiting for someone to enter...


Thank you, Patrick!

About the Author:

Patrick Moody is a middle school custodian who draws inspiration from the spooky night-time halls. He lives in Connecticut. The Gravedigger's Son is his first novel.

Find Patrick: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Book Description:

Hardcover, 304 pages
Expected publication: August 1st 2017 by Sky Pony Press

“A Digger must not refuse a request from the Dead." —Rule Five of the Gravedigger’s Code

Ian Fossor is last in a long line of Gravediggers. It’s his family’s job to bury the dead and then, when Called by the dearly departed, to help settle the worries that linger beyond the grave so spirits can find peace in the Beyond.

But Ian doesn’t want to help the dead—he wants to be a Healer and help the living. Such a wish is, of course, selfish and impossible. Fossors are Gravediggers. So he reluctantly continues his training under the careful watch of his undead mentor, hoping every day that he’s never Called and carefully avoiding the path that leads into the forbidden woods bordering the cemetery.

Just as Ian’s friend, Fiona, convinces him to talk to his father, they’re lured into the woods by a risen corpse that doesn’t want to play by the rules. There, the two are captured by a coven of Weavers, dark magic witches who want only two thing—to escape the murky woods where they’ve been banished, and to raise the dead and shift the balance of power back to themselves.

Only Ian can stop them. With a little help from his friends. And his long-dead ancestors.

Equal parts spooky and melancholy, funny and heartfelt, The Gravedigger’s Son is a gorgeous debut that will long sit beside Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book and Jonathan Auxier's The Night Gardener.

Giveaway

Thanks to Patrick for sponsoring this giveaway!
What's up for grabs: Signed ARC of The Gravedigger's Son
Scope: International

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Get your daily dose of YA and MG debut goodness in #CelebratingDebutantes2017! 

Click the button above to be redirected to the main page where you can browse the list of novels and authors that we are featuring.

Celebrating Debutantes 2017: Siren Sisters by Dana Langer (Author Interview + Giveaway)

Hi guys! For the first feature of Celebrating Debutantes 2017, we have Siren Sisters by Dana Langer! I have always enjoyed reading about mermaids and sirens. It is such a delight to see this flowing into MG stories. I am a firm believer that each age group should have their own "representative" book of a specific topic.

Today I am interviewing Dana about her debut. Stick around until the end to get a chance to win a finished copy of Siren Sisters!

Could you tell us who or what inspired Siren Sisters?

Hello! Thank you so much for having me. SIREN SISTERS was inspired by a combination of things, mainly me growing up with my sister and female cousins and also teaching The Odyssey to high school students and wanting to hear more from the monsters and female characters.

Could you tell us about the Sirens in your book? Did they deviate from the typical siren mythology in any way? Did you make alterations?
My favorite aspect of siren mythology has always been that they generally appear in a group. I thought that idea lent itself nicely to a story about sisterhood and sacrifice, and I kept that consistent in my book. I added the detail about their changing hair color and scales growing in when they turn thirteen because I wanted their magical transformation to mirror some of the more mundane transformations that kids go through at that age.

Could you tell us more about Lolly's sisters Lula, Lara, and Lily?
I think of Lara as being very motherly, strong, and protective, someone who gives a lot of herself without thinking twice about it; I see Lily as being very angry, secretly quite sensitive, and a little immature; and I see Lula as being more impulsive and less of a worrier than all the others. I think they're all very loyal and loving, and I like to think they'd all grow up and do good things in the world.

In a review that I read, it was mentioned that the sea witch didn't like to be in the water. Why is this? Could you give us a bit of background on this?
I think of the sea witch as being a sea witch because her soul is hidden in the sea and because she can control storms. Historically though, one of the ways they used to test people to see if they were witches was by throwing them in the water and seeing whether or not they drowned (it was believed that witches would float). Also, she has a lot of negative associations with boats, drowning, and the shipping industry in general, so I just felt that she would not be a fan of being in the water.

What was the hardest part or scene to write?
The ending was difficult in terms of deciding how much to state explicitly versus how much to leave for the reader to infer. I've heard it described as a "cliffhanger" before, but, without giving away too much, in my mind the outcome is clear given the fact that Lolly is narrating the story.

Thank you, Dana!

About the Author:

Dana Langer is a New York based high school teacher. She holds a BA in creative writing and an MA in teaching from Brandeis University where she received the Dafna Zamarripa-Gesundheit Fiction Prize. SIREN SISTERS (Simon&Schuster/Aladdin, 2017) is her debut novel.

Find Dana: Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Website

Book Description:

"Purposeful messages for inclusion and against stereotyping are scattered throughout. Touching on family relationships, grieving, growing up, first romance, and Norse mythology, this is an exciting fantasy with a heart-stopping ending by an author to watch." -Kirkus

When they're not in school or running their small town's diner, the four Salt sisters are secretly luring ships to their doom from the cliffs of Starbridge Cove, Maine. With alluring voices that twelve-year-old Lolly has yet to grow into (not that she wants to anyway) the girls do the work mandated by the Sea Witch, a glamorous figure determined to keep them under her control. With their mother dead after a mysterious car accident, and their father, a once famous folk singer, drowning in grief, the sisters have only each other to rely on, carrying on with their lives and duties until a local sea captain gets suspicious about the shipwrecks.

On the day before her birthday, Lolly watches in helpless horror as her sisters are lured themselves by curse-reversing fishermen--and suddenly it's up to her and her best friend Jason to rescue the sirens of Starbridge Cove.

Giveaway

Thanks to Dana for sponsoring this giveaway!
What's up for grabs: Finished Copy of Siren Sisters
Scope: US

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Get your daily dose of YA and MG debut goodness in #CelebratingDebutantes2017! 

Click the button above to be redirected to the main page where you can browse the list of novels and authors that we are featuring.

Celebrating Debutantes 2017: Kick-off!

Hi everyone! I'm back online after some months of rest. We are back with the third wave of Celebrating Debutantes.

But first, before we officially start, I would just like to mention that this is the biggest event we have tried to put up together so far. We have nearly 90 authors on board and counting. We are still accepting participants and are happy to welcome more debut authors. The annual event has become a search to find fresh reads. We are always on the look out for something new - something interesting. We have found that in a lot of the stories that we encountered while searching for debuts.

So please join me us in the event kick-off for #CelebratingDebutantes2017!

The Basics:

What is Celebrating Debutantes 2017? It's a blog event in which we would be featuring debut authors from NA, YA and MG that would have their books published in 2017. This feature was originally hosted by Michelle from The Escapist, however, she has left the blogosphere to focus on more important things in her life - work and ministry. So she passed on the crown to me.

What happens now? Maricar and I are going to host #CelebratingDebutantes2017 for three months nonstop. Yes, you read that right. Nonstop.

Who are hosting this event? Yours truly, from Fragments of Life + Maricar from Blackplume.

Duration of the event? June 1 to September 1, 2017

Be prepared to discover your next favorite book. Get your daily dose of debut goodness in #CelebratingDebutantes2017! Here is the list of novels and authors we are featuring:

Celebrating Debutantes 2017 Participant List:
Siren Sisters by Dana Langer - Finished Copy of Siren Sisters A List of Cages by Robin Roe - Finished Copy of A List of Cages (BookDepo) Sand Runner by Vera Brook - Paperback of Sand Runner Rules for Thieves by Alexandra Ott - Signed Hardcover of Rules for Thieves Poison Kiss by Breeana Shields - Signed Hardcover of Poison Kiss Post-High School Reality Quest by Meg Eden The Wingsnatchers by Sarah Jean Horwitz
Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index by Julie Israel
Flight Risk by Jennifer Fenn The Beast is an Animal by Peternelle van Arsdale The Gravedigger's Son by Patrick Moody The Good Byline by Jill Orr Whenever I’m With You by Lydia Sharp Frostblood by Elly Blake
A Psalm for Lost Girls by Katie Bayerl
The Someday Birds by Sally J Pla
Zenn Diagram by Wendy Brant
It Started With Goodbye by Christina June
Soulmated by Shaila Patel
Under Locker and Key by Allison K. Hymas
The Takedown by Corrie Wang
Aftercare Instructions by Bonnie Pipkin
Wait for Me by Caroline Leech
Blood Rose Rebellion by Rosalyn Eves
Girl Out Of Water by Laura Silverman
Wing Jones by Katherine Webber
The Disappearances by Emily Bain Murphy
Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller
The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson
Midnight Without A Moon by Linda Williams Jackson
How To Stage A Catastrophe by Rebecca Donnelly
The Castaways by Jessika Fleck
Garden of Thorns by Amber Mitchelle
Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth Behar
The Gallery of Unfinished Girls by Lauren Karcz
One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus
Daughter of the Burning City by Amanda Food
In 27 Days by Alison Gervais
If Birds Fly Back by Carlie Sorosiak
The Wood by Chelsea Bobulski
Just Friends by Tiffany Pitcock
Devils Within by S.F. Henson
The Thing with Feathers by McCall Hoyle
Lemons by Melissa savage
Seeking Mansfield by Kate Watson
Lost Boys by Darcey Rosenblatt
Even the Darkest Stars by Heather Fawcett
You Don’t Know Me But I Know You
Kat Greene Comes Clean by Melissa Roske
The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke
The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli
The Tiger’s Daughter (Their Bright Ascendency #1) by K. Arsenault Rivera
Dare Mighty Things by Heather Kaczynski
Now Is Everything by Amy Giles
Kat and Meg Conquer the World by Anna Priemaza
The Love Letters of Abelard and Lily by Laura Creedle
The Good Byline by Jill Orr
The Tragically True Adventures of Kit Donovan by Patricia Bailey
The Temptation of Adam by Dave Connis
Dear Martin by Nic Stone
How to Break a Boy by Laurie Devore
#Famous by Jilly Gagnon
Sketchy Tacos by Megan Gonzalez
Golden by Katie Robinson
The Traitor’s Kiss by Erin Beaty
Gray Wolf Island by Tracey Neithercott
When Planets Fall by Abby Reed
League of American Traitors by Matthew Landis
The Big F by Maggie Ann Martin
Being Fishkill by Ruth Lehrer
Love for Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman
To Catch a Killer by Sheryl Scarborough
Speak Easy, Speak Love by Mckelle George
Sad Perfect by Stephanie Elliot
Red Stars by Gwen Katz
Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire by Susan Tan
The Wishing Heart by Jennifer Welker
The Unlikely Story of a Pig in the City by Jodi Kendall
Vilonia Beebe Takes Charge by Kristin Gray
The Last to Die by Kelly Garrett
The Gravedigger’s Son by Patrick Moody
The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett by Chelsea Sedoti
Noah Can’t Even by Simon James Green
Seven Days of You by Cecilia Vinesse
Jasmine Toguchi, Mochi Queen by Debbi Michiko Florence
Muddy Waters by Sara O. Thompson

We have a blog event button! Please feel free to grab it and use it anywhere - especially when sharing about this event. ;) 

Giveaway

What's up for grabs:
For international readers: A Pre-order of any of the debut novels featured in #CelebratingDebutantes2017
For Filipino residents: A Surprise Prize Pack

Rules:

INTL peeps - this will be ordered and shipped via the Book Depository (check if BookDepo ships to your country)
PH readers - we will send the surprise prize pack via local courier
We are not responsible for items lost in transit.
Winners will be contacted via email and needs to response within 48 hours, otherwise a new winner will be drawn.
Ends on June 30, 2017

Click here to enter the giveaway!

Let's do this!

Celebrating Debutantes 2016: The Rampart Guards by Wendy Terrien (Author Interview + Giveaway)

Hi guys! #CelebratingDebutantes2016 is coming to an end. We still have a lot of giveaways ongoing so don't miss out! Today I'm interviewing Wendy about her debut, The Rampart Guards. Stick around for the giveaway!


***
Could you tell us about the fantastical creatures in the book? What was the process and guidelines for selecting them?
W: I love talking about cryptids — creatures that may or may not exist, like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster. Everyone’s heard of those two. But when I heard the word “chupacabra” on a television show (Bones), I didn’t know what that was and I had to investigate. With the power of Google I learned about the chupacabra, and the world of cryptids — and there are tons of creatures out there that qualify as cryptids. I loved the whole “what if they do exist” idea, and my story was born from there.

I wanted to use cryptids in my novel that were different than those we’re familiar with, so I dug deeper into my research. I searched websites, read summaries and personal accounts by people who’d experienced sightings, and I read books by cryptid experts, or cryptozoologists. I studied the characters of different cryptids, and I looked for particular qualities that I wanted for the roles they’d play in the book. Plus I wanted fun, and for me Skyfish are a lot of fun. Skyfish experts tell us they are flying around us all the time, even through us. They aren’t usually seen by the human eye, but can be caught on film, and you can see videos online of what are claimed to Skyfish. And hey — maybe they really do exist? The giant squid used to be classified as a cryptid, as did the mountain gorilla…

In a review, it was mentioned that you brought the world of cryptozoology into your novel. What kind of research did you do for your novel, up to what extent?
W: In addition to the research I mentioned above, I spent time reading about some of the leading cryptozoologists and reviewed their work. I wanted to understand how they approached their investigations, what kinds of tools they used or skills they needed, and how they were viewed by the rest of the scientific world. I also asked a friend of mine to beta read my novel. He’s a writer, an entomologist, and a cryptozoologist, so I knew he’d be able to give me both a fresh and authentic perspective on the story.

How did you find the balance between adventure, mystery and fantasy?
W: Honestly, I didn’t think about that piece too much. The story is character-driven, and I focused on that aspect. I think the adventure, mystery, and fantasy pieces naturally fell into place around it.

What was the most difficult part or scene to write? Why?
W: The first chapter. I mean, it’s the first chapter and that alone brings the challenge of grabbing your reader from the start and keeping them interested. Add on the fact that you’re introducing fantasy elements and having to do some world building without it getting too lecture-y, and the challenge is amplified. I discarded numerous “chapter ones” before the actual chapter one showed up for me. And even after I did get it in place, I rewrote that chapter more than any other part of the book. Which is saying something because I revised and revised and revised.

Did you encounter any difficulties with writing Middle Grade? How did you deal with it?
W: I was uncertain about what you can have characters say and do in Middle Grade. There’s plenty of guidance out there, with lists like “things you should never do in MG novels,” but you can also find articles and information that counter most of that “never” advice. It was frustrating. I finally decided on this as my guiding mantra: If kids do it in real life, I’m putting it in the book. Using swear words is an example of that. Kids use swear words. They might not say them in front of adults, but many kids do say them. Kids around the age of my protagonist and his friends (14) tend to use more of the “PG-rated” swear words, so I stayed within those boundaries.

The other challenge I had was how to qualify The Rampart Guards. Yes, if you follow some of those rules about what makes a book Middle Grade, like the age of the protagonist, my book qualifies as Middle Grade (he’s 13 when the book starts, turns 14 shortly thereafter). But there are some elements of the book that are a bit tougher, maybe a bit darker than would otherwise be in a Middle Grade novel. Because of that, I say The Rampart Guards is recommended for upper Middle Grade, and I officially categorized it Young Adult. It sits right on that line between the two.

Thank you for sharing, Wendy!

About the Author:

Wendy Terrien received her first library card at age two, and a few years later started writing her own stories. Her debut novel The Rampart Guards (February 2016) is a #1 regional best seller and was a Kirkus Indie Book of the Month in April 2016. The novel is the first in her intriguing urban fantasy series.

Inspired by an episode of Bones that suspected a killer to be a fabled chupacabra, Wendy was fascinated and dove into research about cryptozoology--the study of animals that may or may not exist, or cryptids. Pouring over stories, videos and photographs of creatures others had seen all over the world, Wendy developed her own story to share with middle grade, young adult and grown-up readers.

Wendy graduated from the University of Utah and transplanted to Colorado where she completed her MBA at the University of Denver. Having applied her marketing expertise to the financial and network security industries, it wasn’t until a career coach stepped in that she fully immersed herself in her passion for writing. Wendy began attending writers conferences, workshops and retreats.

She regularly participates in two critique groups, and is the Secretary of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, and a member of Pikes Peak Writers. In 2014, she was a finalist in the San Francisco Writer’s Contest, and is a founding member of Wicked Ink Books. Wendy released a novella in the award-winning Wicked Ink Books anthology, Tick Tock: Seven Tales of Time.

Wendy lives in Colorado with her husband, Kevin, and their three dogs: Maggie, Shea, and Boon. All three of her dogs are rescues, and Wendy is passionate about promoting shelter adoptions. If you’re in Colorado, you may even be able to spot her by her “Adopt a Shelter Pet” license plates.

Find Wendy: Twitter | Goodreads | Website | Facebook

Book Description:

Hardcover, 270 pages
Published February 29th 2016 by Camashea Press

After his mom disappears, Jason Lex and his family move to a small town where he has no friends, no fun, no life. Things get worse when he’s chased by weird flying creatures that only he can see---Jason thinks he’s losing it.

But when Jason discovers new information about his family, he’s stunned to learn that creatures like Skyfish, Kappa, and the Mongolian Death Worm aren’t just stories on the Internet---they’re real and they live unseen alongside the human race. Many of these creatures naturally emit energy capable of incinerating humans. An invisible shield keeps these creatures hidden and protects the human race from their threatening force, but someone, or some thing, is trying to destroy it.

Unsure who he can trust, Jason is drawn into the fight to save the people closest to him, and he finds help in surprising places. Confronted with loss, uncertainty, and a devastating betrayal, Jason must make a gut-wrenching decision:

Who lives, and who dies.

Giveaway

What's up for grabs: Copy of The Rampart Guards
Scope: US and CA

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Treat yourself to a complete #CelebratingDebutantes2016 experience. Click the image below for the full schedule and links to the posts!

Celebrating Debutantes 2016: The Last Cherry Blossom by Kathleen Burkinshaw (Author Interview + Giveaway)

Hi guys! This is the fifth feature for #CelebratingDebutantes2016! Maricar and I are posting alternately from August 5 all the way to September 30. Keep coming back for more features and giveaways. It's listed in the main Celebrating Debutantes page, which you can access by clicking the post over here >>> (top right). Today, we are featuring a dramatic and heart-wrenching historical novel, from a young girl's point of view - The Last Cherry Blossom..

Good morning, Kathleen! Thanks for taking the time to drop by.

Hi Precious! Thank you so much for having me on your blog! :)

Did you encounter any challenges in writing The Last Cherry Blossom? How did you deal with it? Because the main character, Yuriko was based on my mother, it took me a while to figure out how to describe her as a 12-year-old, not the person I knew as my mom. So once I began describing Yuriko as a fictional young girl in Japan, it was easier to then sprinkle some of my mother’s personality traits in the mix.

The other challenge for me was the order of events in her life. I would get bogged down in the details and forget that there is some fiction in this book, so that the exact events did not have to happen in the same timeline as in her life, or even be in the book at all for that matter.

I have read that the story is loosely based on your mother's firsthand experience. Aside from this, what kind of research did you do for the book to flesh out the story world of Yuriko? I spent many, many, many hours reading books written about how WWII affected the people in Japan. There were some books that had diaries of older people during the years that Japan was at war. Japan had been at war since 1937 with China. So by the time that Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the Japanese people had already been at war for four long years. By reading these accounts, I was able to get a better understanding on how the Japanese viewed their Emperor and the lengths some would go to support him. I researched newspaper headlines, radio show slogans, and propaganda poster copy.

My family visited the Hiroshima Peace Museum last year. We also honored my mother at the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for Atomic bomb victims. Being there in person and standing on the same ground that my mother and others experienced such horror and destruction, broke my heart. I tried to use that emotion for Yuriko’s reactions when I was doing revisions.

Was it difficult to slip into a young girl's mind to retell the story? What were the pros and cons of narrating a tragic story from a child's perspective? At first, yes. But once I focused more on how I might have reacted to those situations at 12-years-old, it became much easier.
Pros- more honest reaction, most likely to say what they are thinking
Cons- I had to be careful that Yuriko, didn’t act or say things as if she had the same knowledge or understanding that an adult would.

What is the message that you want readers to pick up from The Last Cherry Blossom? That nuclear weapons should never be used again on any country for any reason. Each person under the famous mushroom clouds of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were someone’s mother, father, sister, brother, or child.


If you could write a story in a different genre. What genre would it be and what would it be about? Perhaps a fantasy novel based on a Japanese fairy tale. :)

Thank you, Kathleen!

About the Author:

Kathleen Burkinshaw resides in Charlotte, NC. She’s a wife, mom to a daughter in college (dreading the reality of being an empty nester-most of the time), and owns a dog who is a kitchen ninja. Kathleen enjoyed a 10+ year career in HealthCare Management unfortunately cut short by the onset of Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD). Writing gives her an outlet for her daily struggle with chronic pain. She has carried her mother’s story her whole life and feels privileged to now share it with the world. Writing historical fiction also satisfies her obsessive love of researching anything and everything.

Find Kara: Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook | Blog

Book Description:

Hardcover, 240 pages
Published August 2nd 2016 by Sky Pony Press

Following the seventieth anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, this is a new, very personal story to join Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.

Yuriko was happy growing up in Hiroshima when it was just her and Papa. But her aunt Kimiko and her cousin Genji are living with them now, and the family is only getting bigger with talk of a double marriage! And while things are changing at home, the world beyond their doors is even more unpredictable. World War II is coming to an end, and Japan's fate is not entirely clear, with any battle losses being hidden fom its people. Yuriko is used to the sirens and the air-raid drills, but things start to feel more real when the neighbors who have left to fight stop coming home. When the bomb hits Hiroshima, it’s through Yuriko’s twelve-year-old eyes that we witness the devastation and horror.

This is a story that offers young readers insight into how children lived during the war, while also introducing them to Japanese culture. Based loosely on author Kathleen Burkinshaw’s mother’s firsthand experience surviving the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, The Last Cherry Blossom hopes to warn readers of the immense damage nuclear war can bring, while reminding them that the “enemy” in any war is often not so different from ourselves.

Giveaway

Thanks to Kathleen and Sky Pony Press for this giveaway!
What's up for grabs: Copy of The Last Cherry Blossom + Bookmarks
Scope: US and CA

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Treat yourself to a complete #CelebratingDebutantes2016 experience. Click the image below for the full schedule and links to the posts!

Celebrating Debutantes 2016, Second Wave: Kick-off Giveaway!

Hi everyone! I'm back online after some weeks of quiet. We officially launched the first wave #CelebratingDebutantes2016 on February 15, 2016. Now, we're back with the second wave! This will last for almost two months.

The Basics:

What is Celebrating Debutantes 2016? It's a blog event in which we would be featuring debut authors from NA, YA and MG that would have their books published in 2016. This feature was originally hosted by Michelle from The Escapist, however, she has left the blogosphere to focus on more important things in her life - work and ministry. So she passed on the crown to me.

What is different? Maricar and I split the event into two parts: First wave and Second wave. (This is the second wave!) We want to give readers a this-is-going-to-be-sold-soon-we-need-to-buy-it experience and awareness.

Who are hosting this event? Yours truly, from Fragments of Life + Maricar from Blackplume.

Duration of the event? August 4 to September 30 2016

Treat yourself to a complete #CelebratingDebutantes2016 experience. Take note of our schedule below, zero in on the titles that you're interested in, mark the date and visit us on the said date! But if you're here to discover debut authors and are ready for recs, then please be prepared for the onslaught. Because this event will last for 58 days of fun, book love and madness!

Here are the novels and the authors that will be featured:

Tokens and Omens by Jeri Baird
The Voyage to Magical North by Claire Fayers Frayed by Kara Terzis
Lucky Few by Kathryn Ormsbee
The Last Cherry Blossom by Kathleen Burkinshaw Rani Patel in Full Effect by Sonia Patel
Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye The Way to Game the Walk of Shame by Jenn P. Nguyen
Enter Title Here by Rahul Kanakia  Fear the Drowning Deep by Sarah Glenn Marsh
In the Shadow of the Dragon King by J Keller Ford
The Distance To Home by Jenn Bishop
Cherry by Lindsey Rosin
Orangeboy by Patrice Lawrence
The Killer in Me by Margot Harrison
Genesis Girl by Jennifer Bardsley Dragon's Ring by Debra Daugherty
The Art of Holding On and Letting Go by Kristin Bartley Lenz Doreen by Ilana Manaster
How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather
Never Ever by Sara Saedi
Learning to Swear in America by Katie Kennedy The Fray Theory: Resonance by Nelou Keramati
The Weight of Zero by Karen Fortunati
100 Days of Cake by Shari Goldhagen In the Mind of Revenge by Liv Hadden
Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West Life Before by Michele Bacon Lucky Strikes by Louis Bayard Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow The Cat King of Havana by Tom Crosshill Songs about a Girl by Chris Russell The Hawkweed Prophecy by Irena Brignull The Rampart Guards by Wendy Terrien
The Adventurer's Guide to Successful Escapes by Wade Albert White
Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland
Ripple by Heather Smith Meloche
Kingdom of Ashes (Nightfall #1) by Elena May
Resurrecting Sunshine by Lisa A. Koosis
At First Blush by Beth Ellyn Summer
Sometimes We Tell the Truth by Kim Zarins
A Bond Of Venom and Magic by Karen Tomlinson
Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig  Girls in the Moon by Janet McNally
A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jesicca Cluess
Iron Cast by Destiny Soria
Beast by Brie Spangler
Queen of Fire by Cassandra James
Unblemished by Sara Ella
Spin the Sky by Jill MacKenzie
Bound by Blood and Sand by Becky Allen
Saving Hamlet by Molly Booth
If I Fix You by Abigail Johnson
Until I Break by Kara Bietz
Timekeeper by Tara Sim
Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill
We have a blog event button. This little baby is gonna be useful. You could put it on your sidebar or use it as a profile picture on Twitter for a limited time, and voila, it would mean +3 points on every giveaway that we would be running.

Giveaway

What's up for grabs:
For international readers: A Finished Copy/Pre-order of any of the debut novels featured in #CelebratingDebutantes2016 Second Wave
For Filipino residents: A Surprise Prize Pack

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I can't wait!

Celebrating Debutantes 2016, Second Wave: Kick-off Giveaway!

Hi everyone! I'm back online after some weeks of quiet. We officially launched the first wave #CelebratingDebutantes2016 on February 15, 2016. Now, we're back with the second wave! This will last for almost two months.

The Basics:

What is Celebrating Debutantes 2016? It's a blog event in which we would be featuring debut authors from NA, YA and MG that would have their books published in 2016. This feature was originally hosted by Michelle from The Escapist, however, she has left the blogosphere to focus on more important things in her life - work and ministry. So she passed on the crown to me.

What is different? Maricar and I split the event into two parts: First wave and Second wave. (This is the second wave!) We want to give readers a this-is-going-to-be-sold-soon-we-need-to-buy-it experience and awareness.

Who are hosting this event? Yours truly, from Fragments of Life + Maricar from Blackplume.

Duration of the event? August 4 to September 30 2016

Treat yourself to a complete #CelebratingDebutantes2016 experience. Take note of our schedule below, zero in on the titles that you're interested in, mark the date and visit us on the said date! But if you're here to discover debut authors and are ready for recs, then please be prepared for the onslaught. Because this event will last for 58 days of fun, book love and madness!

Here are the novels and the authors that will be featured:

Tokens and Omens by Jeri Baird
The Voyage to Magical North by Claire Fayers Frayed by Kara Terzis
Lucky Few by Kathryn Ormsbee
The Last Cherry Blossom by Kathleen Burkinshaw
Life Before by Michele Bacon
The Hawkweed Prophecy by Irena Brignull
The Way to Game the Walk of Shame by Jenn P. Nguyen
Enter Title Here by Rahul Kanakia
In the Shadow of the Dragon King by J Keller Ford
The Distance To Home by Jenn Bishop
Cherry by Lindsey Rosin
Orangeboy by Patrice Lawrence
The Killer in Me by Margot Harrison
Genesis Girl by Jennifer Bardsley
Doreen by Ilana Manaster
How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather
Never Ever by Sara Saedi
Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow
Learning to Swear in America by Katie Kennedy
The Last Life of Avrilis by Bethany Morrow
Fear the Drowning Deep by Sarah Glenn Marsh
Lucky Strikes by Louis Bayard
Songs about a Girl by Chris Russell
The Fray Theory: Resonance by Nelou Keramati
In the Mind of Revenge by Liv Hadden
Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West
The Weight of Zero by Karen Fortunati
The Rampart Guards by Wendy Terrien
The Art of Holding On and Letting Go by Kristin Bartley Lenz
Tears of Time by Joel Lawrence
The Adventurer's Guide to Successful Escapes by Wade Albert White
Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco
Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland
The Cat King of Havana by Tom Crosshill
Ripple by Heather Smith Meloche
Kingdom of Ashes (Nightfall #1) by Elena May
Resurrecting Sunshine by Lisa A. Koosis
Rani Patel in Full Effect by Sonia Patel
At First Blush by Beth Ellyn Summer
Sometimes We Tell the Truth by Kim Zarins
A Bond Of Venom and Magic by Karen Tomlinson
Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig 100 Days of Cake by Shari Goldhagen
 Girls in the Moon by Janet McNally
A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jesicca Cluess
Iron Cast by Destiny Soria
Beast by Brie Spangler
Queen of Fire by Cassandra James
Unblemished by Sara Ella
Spin the Sky by Jill MacKenzie
Bound by Blood and Sand by Becky Allen
Saving Hamlet by Molly Booth
If I Fix You by Abigail Johnson
Until I Break by Kara Bietz
Timekeeper by Tara Sim
Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill
We have a blog event button. This little baby is gonna be useful. You could put it on your sidebar or use it as a profile picture on Twitter for a limited time, and voila, it would mean +3 points on every giveaway that we would be running.

Giveaway

What's up for grabs:
For international readers: A Finished Copy/Pre-order of any of the debut novels featured in #CelebratingDebutantes2016 Second Wave
For Filipino residents: A Surprise Prize Pack

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I can't wait!

Review: The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann

Book Description via Goodreads:

Paperback, 376 pages
September 1, 2012, HarperCollins Publishers

THE GRAVEYARD BOOK meets JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL in this gothic steampunk page-turner for readers of all ages.

Bartholomew Kettle won't live long. Changelings never do. The child of a human mother and a faery father, Bartholomew is a secret, despised by both his races. If the English don't hang him for witchcraft, the faerys will do something worse. So his mother keeps him locked away, hidden from the world in the faery slums of Bath.

But one day Bartholomew witnesses a mysterious lady kidnap another changeling through a shadowy portal, and he realizes the danger is closer than ever before. Changelings are surfacing in the rivers, their bodies empty of blood and bone and their skin covered in red markings. A powerful figure sits in the shadows, pushing the pieces in place for some terrible victory. When a sinister faery in a top-hat begins to stalk Bartholomew's steps, he knows it's his turn. Something is coming for him. Something needs him. But when you're a changeling there's nowhere to run...

Buy The Peculiar!

Source: Christine, HarperCollins + PBT (Thank you!!)

My Thoughts:

Before reading The Peculiar, I was prepared for steampunkery and faeries. I guess I expected a taste of the ambiance of Ironskin by Tina Connolly. But instead I got a piece of a cruel, cruel world, a glimpse into the lives of the people in the faery slums and a lonely changeling. In London, faeries, changelings and humans co-existed and shared a strained relationship. Bells rang every five minutes, hindering and molding the magical nature of faeries. Without a way home, they were forced to stay in the human world. I loved my short stay in the story world of The Peculiar. It was a vivid and imaginative world, with a balance between the elements of magic and technology. The attention to detail reminded me of the style of Cassandra Clare.

I enjoyed reading the story from two perspectives: Bartholomew’s and Mr. Jelliby’s. I liked how the author wrote this novel in such a way that the story of these two characters formed two halves of a whole. Bartholomew was a changeling living in the faery slums and as a changeling, he lived in fear of discovery. He was constantly reminded to be extra careful. He shouldn’t grab the attention of other people. Despite Barty being half-faery and half-human, he seemed more human than fay. He longed for friendship and was protective of his younger sister. I liked to consider changelings as the minority in this equation. They were often viewed so negatively in such a way that they were a menace and are easily disposable that their lives were in constant danger.

Mr. Jelliby was a character that I was fond of. He had the big heart of Mo from Liesl & Po and the gentlemanliness and sophistication of Jem from Clockwork Angel, only more posh, slightly unlucky and active in politics. He was super nice, to the point that he dreaded Privy Council meetings because it involved topics like murder, but he was not weak. Through his luck and persistence, Mr. Jelliby uncovered important bits of information and he didn’t sit still for one minute. He acted out. I liked how Mr. Jelliby’s strengths and weaknesses were balanced out and more importantly, I liked how he braved the danger he knew he was getting into.

The faeries in The Peculiar were the kind that interested me and creeped me out. For instance, Mr. Lickerish reminded me so much of a typical faery prince or a faery nobel. Powerful, gorgeous and elegant but with a mean streak and an innate coldness in him, in my mind I was associating him with the UnSeelie. Jack Box was the one that creeped me out and annoyed me the most but at the end of the book, I found pity and understanding for his character. Back to basic was what happened in The Peculiar and it was very effective. As Bachmann said in his guest post, sometimes faeries tend to be romanticized and I do agree with him. Showing the 'evil' side of faeries was something I liked.

The ending was heartbreakingly good. I was so sad that it ended there. It was that moment when you find yourself sitting at the edge of your seat, looking for the next page only to find out that you’ve finished the book. My only complaint was that there were times while reading it that I felt that the pacing was slow. However, I have no issues with slow pacing. I just felt that these parts weren’t in sync with the other parts where I flipped the pages like mad.

The Peculiar was a heart-pounding steampunk fantasy with a mystery that will keep readers at the edge of their seats and enough suspense to cause a heart attack. I recommend this to readers of steampunk, fantasy and fans of faery novels. Questions, creepiness and murder. If these things interest you, pick this up! If you liked Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr, I believe you might like this, too – in my opinion, the true nature of the faeries were revealed. Minus the romance.

Rating:

4.5 Cupids = Obsessive book love.
Almost made it as one of my favorites! I strongly recommend this!

We have another giveaway! This one is for PH residents only (sorry US and International peeps!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget that there will be a Twitter Party on February 2nd after the tour! I think there might be more prizes. ;)

Review: Liesl and Po by Lauren Oliver

Book Description via Goodreads:

Paperback, 336 pages

August 28, 2012, Harper Collins

Liesl lives in a tiny attic bedroom, locked away by her cruel stepmother. Her only friends are the shadows and the mice, until one night a ghost appears from the darkness. It is Po, who comes from the Other Side. Both Liesl and Po are lonely, but together they are less alone.

That same night, an alchemist's apprentice, Will, bungles an important delivery. He accidentally switches a box containing the most powerful magic in the world with one containing something decidedly less remarkable.

Will's mistake has tremendous consequences for Liesl and Po, and it draws the three of them together on an extraordinary journey.

From New York Times bestselling author Lauren Oliver comes a luminous and magnificent novel that glows with rare magic, ghostly wonders, and a true friendship that lights even the darkest of places.

Source: Bought

My Thoughts:

Liesl reminded me a bit of Cinderella sans being enslaved. She was treated badly, deceived and manipulated by her stepmother. She was locked in the attic and kept away from the truth. Liesl was a curious girl. Her voice, despite its childlike quality and naivety, had its own sense of maturity.

Po and Bundle were Liesl’s ghostly friends. Po, having been dead for so long, has forgotten to be human but the more time he spent with Liesl, the more he became re-humanized. In a way, he was breathing life back into his being by caring and remembering. Bundle was the pet I never had. It says ‘mwark.’ It’s a hybrid, neither dog nor cat but both. It just was Bundle. I liked the simplicity of it. Just being, just existing. No pressure brought about by rules and norms. Oliver’s twist on the afterlife was unique. Things and people fade but at the same time become one with the universe. Ghosts went beyond norms and divisions and have become genderless, ageless and free to be whoever they want to be. I think the last part is the most beautiful of all.

I was entertained throughout the story. As I jumped from Will’s tragic life to Po’s world-traveling to Liesl’s journey to keep her dad’s ashes safe, I glimpsed upon a certain universal truth: all of the characters were sad in their own way. Will was the alchemist’s apprentice, constantly being ordered to do errands and barely getting any sleep from it all. He had a crush on Liesl and seeing her draw everyday was the only thing he looked forward to.

The plot was a balance of light, fun scenes, suspense goose chase and narrow escapes and musing, mournful realizations. Liesl’s journey was a journey that my heart and soul were anchored to. I didn’t simply read just for the sake of enjoyment. I needed to know how it will end. The musings about life, death and everything else in between were what I loved the most. They were profound, raw and true, as beautiful as the author’s writing style.

I liked how the characters represented humanity as a whole. There was a balance of good and bad characters. Lady Premiere and Sticky really embodied hunger for power and greed while Mo embodied all the sweetness and warmth in the world. The unearthly and mysterious vibe took over my reading experience. It had an air of possibility and surprises. Anything can happen in the magical story world that Oliver created.

Liesl and Po is bittersweet, deep, breathtaking and soulful. Once again, Oliver took my breath away with her flawless writing, but this time with a Middle Grade hit. Get your dose of magic, tragedy and adventure in Liesl and Po. I highly recommend this to everyone – it’s not just for MG readers and fantasy readers.

Rating:

5 Cupids = Eternal book love. 

I will never, ever, ever forget this book. I highly recommend this!