Blog Tour: Branded by Abi Ketner & Missy Kalicicki

Hey Everyone!

Welcome to my stop on the Branded Blog Tour!

This book was action packed and definitely took me by surprise!

Title: Branded

Series: Sinners #1

Author: Abi Ketner & Missy Kalicicki

Pages: 252

Published: 06.27.13

Acquired: Netgalley

Goodreads Rating:

My Rating: 4.0

Goodreads

Amazon

Synopsis:

Fifty years ago the Commander came into power and murdered all who opposed him. In his warped mind, the seven deadly sins were the downfall of society. He created the Hole where sinners are branded according to their sins and might survive a few years. At best.

Now LUST wraps around my neck like blue fingers strangling me. I’ve been accused of a crime I didn’t commit and now the Hole is my new home.

Darkness. Death. Violence. Pain.

Now every day is a fight for survival. But I won’t die. I won’t let them win.

The Hole can’t keep me. The Hole can’t break me.
I am more than my brand. I’m a fighter.
My name is Lexi Hamilton, and this is my story.

My Review:

I had been seeing talks of this book show up all over my social media lately. So when the authors contacted me to read this book, I decided to give it a shot. Especially when I saw some of the bloggers who are apart of our FFBC had read the book when it first came out and gave it some great reviews.

I have to say that the best part of this book was the beginning. The story starts off right when Lexi is being arrested. Of the bat you are drawn into the story. The pace that is set up in the beginning of the story continues all the way to end. The story is action packed and keeps you engaged through out the entire story. But I have to admit that I kind of wished that the paced slowed down somewhat towards the last third of the book. So much happens that I wished we had more time to really absorb and digest the plot points before the next thing occurred.

Other than pacing, this book is filled with some great characters. Our main character Lexi is put into a terrible situation. Falsely Accused of having a sexual relationship with her step-father she is arrested and "Branded" with the color blue that signifies she been arrested for a sexual act. Once she arrives at the Hole - where all sinners live, she is taunted with cat calls and indecent proposals. But regardless she stays strong and does not let it rattle her. Then there is Cole - SWWWOOON ALERT! It is has been a long time since a I have lusted after a YA male character, but Cole is definitely worth it. There are a few surprising characters that pop up through out the book. And one of them plays an important role in the story. I don't want to give away who it is, but I do wish we got to know more about him in the overall story.

The story ended on a good note. Even though I had problems with the packing towards the end, I did like how the authors were able to set up the next book without leaving it with a cliff hanger. There are so much left to figure out and discover that I am really looking forward to find out how things get resolved.

/ AReadingNurse / 0 comments /

Review: Hiding in the Spotlight by Karen Booth

Synopsis:

Alex Halford’s rock-star husband, Glenn, steals away in the middle of the night, leaving her with their two boys, a mountain of debt, and one person to turn to—his lifelong friend and band mate, David Callahan. David helps Alex pick up the pieces of her shattered life, happy to have any time with the woman he’s loved for seventeen years. Every moment with her is ripe with opportunity, and every last idea running through his mind would destroy his brotherly bond with Glenn.

Out from under Glenn’s thumb, Alex can see the person she was before marriage, finding feelings for David she thought she’d left behind in high school. A single kiss and the floodgates open, giving her new hopes of happiness. But when David and Glenn’s band has a chance to be back on top, David must convince Glenn to return. With every passing day, success comes closer, Glenn’s ego inflates, and David and Alex find it more difficult to hide. One misstep and the secret comes out, forcing David to choose between his life’s work and the woman he doesn’t want to leave behind.

My Review:

When Karen Booth emailed me to tell me that she had a new book coming out and asked if I wanted an arc, my instant reaction was: YES PLEASE!

Immediately when starting this story, my heart was broken for Alex. As the synopsis above states, her husband Glenn, leaves her without a a word other than note and with no money and a pasted due mortgage payments. Unsure what to do, Alex leans on her husbands band mate and best friend David. David is completely supportive and opens his home to Alex and her two boys. But David may have taken on more than he can chew, and he has been in love with Alex his entire life and has never been able to say or do anything about it as she has been with his best-friend.

It was no secret that Alex and David were going to end up falling for each other. As a reader you were expecting it and anticipating them falling for one another. But the author does a great job at building up the suspense and the sexual tension. Each time you think they are going to finally come clean about their feeling for one another, their wishes kept getting pushed back.

Honestly, what stole this story for me was David, everything about him was just pure sexy. First off I absolutely loved reading about his interaction with Alex's boys. To me there is absolutely nothing hotter than a man with children. I love watching Father's interacting with heir kids, and I love reading about it as well. And the way David steps in to take care of Tyler and Page was HOT! Reading about his making them breakfast and swimming with them was even sexier than some of the love scenes. But to add to his daddy-figure of the year award he also makes some of the other sacrifices he makes for Alex was also very sweet and touching!

This was another great story about second chance love with a touch of Rock & Roll!

Both of Karen's stories that I have loved have been about adults reunited with their high school crushes! It gives me hope that I may have a shot with Justin Timberlake after all. - Sorry Jessica Biel!

Karen Booth is a Midwestern girl transplanted in the South, raised on 80s music, Judy Blume, and the films of John Hughes. An early preoccupation with rock 'n' roll led her to spend her twenties working her way from intern to executive in the music industry. Several of her books revolve around the world of backstage passes and band dynamics.

When she's not creating fictional musicians, she's listening to everything from Otis Redding to Duran Duran to Tokyo Police Club with her kids, honing her Southern cooking skills (she makes some mean collards), or sweet-talking her astoundingly supportive husband into whipping up a batch of cocktails.

Author website: http://karenbooth.net

Twitter: https://twitter.com/karenbbooth

Facebook: https://facebook.com/karenboothauthor

/ AReadingNurse / 0 comments /

4-stars Review

FFBC: My Last Kiss by Bethany Neal + Giveaway

Hey Everyone!

Welcome to another FFBC tour!

We have the pleasure of co-hosting the official MY LAST KISS tour

with the amazing Bethany Neal.

This will be an amazing 2 week tour with TONS of great

posts planned. So make sure to follow the tour schedule each day for

TONS OF FUN!

My Last Kiss
by Bethany Neal
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Release Date: June 10th 2014

Synopsis:

What if your last kiss was with the wrong boy?

Cassidy Haines remembers her first kiss vividly. It was on the old covered bridge the summer before her freshman year with her boyfriend of three years, Ethan Keys. But her last kiss--the one she shared with someone at her seventeenth birthday party the night she died--is a blur. Cassidy is trapped in the living world, not only mourning the loss of her human body, but left with the grim suspicion that her untimely death wasn't a suicide as everyone assumes. She can't remember anything from the weeks leading up to her birthday and she's worried that she may have betrayed her boyfriend.

If Cassidy is to uncover the truth about that fateful night and make amends with the only boy she'll ever love, she must face her past and all the decisions she made--good and bad--that led to her last kiss.

Bethany Neal's suspenseful debut novel is about the power of first love and the haunting lies that threaten to tear it apart.

Bethany Neal writes young-adult novels with a little dark side and a lot of kissing! She is obsessed with (but not limited to): nail polish, ginormous rings, pigs, pickles, and dessert.

You can find her locked in her Writertorium for insane amounts of time. But, hey, insanity is fun! My Last Kiss is her first novel.

Oh, come on. You’re really going to torture me like this right out the gate? Okay, well if I have to choose I’m picking a favorite “classic” and a fav contemporary/modern novel. Classic: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald for, if nothing else, Jordan Baker’s one-liners. Contemporary/modern: If I Stay by Gayle Forman. Only 3 months until the movie!!!

Of all time: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But I’m obsessed with The Killing and The Following right now too; they’re both just so well written. Oh, and Pretty Little Liars. Was I only supposed to say one?

Again with this?! OK, um, Clueless—no, Romeo & Juliet circa 1996. Can I have two? This is hard…

This depends a lot on my mood. Right now it’s "You (Ha Ha Ha)" by Charli XCX (featured in the Vampire Academy trailer). The song’s video is boss too. Check it out here.

Sour Patch Kids

Who is your perfect fictional boyfriend? Adam Wilde from If I Stay/Where She Went by Gayle Forman (again!). A musical instrument of some sort and minor emotional baggage is vital in fictional boy perfection.

“I will see you in another life when we are both cats.”

from Vanilla Sky (movie)

So much. Buffy, Zac Efron, Rob Pattinson, Twilight, witches, pigs, puppies, The Following (I’ve renamed Kevin Bacon “The Baconator”), My So-Called Life, 30 Seconds to Mars and relatedly the lead singer/Oscar winner Jared Leto. Also indie movies and sparkles to name a few.

R.L. Stine. It’s a miracle to me that he’s not only still cranking out new quality kiddy thrillers, but his old titles from when I was a kid are still in print! He’s a rockstar!

I love you and thank you! We all need to get together for a book-themed sleepover…as long as we leave the dystopians at home.

Hi Beth! We are really happy to host you in our FFBC. We are super honored to be co-hosting your blog tour for My Last Kiss with you.

My Last Kiss is about a girl named Cassidy who wakes up the morning after her seventeenth birthday party dead. Talk about a hangover, right?! She spends the span of the novel trying to figure out how she died and which of her friends fatally betrayed her, forcing her to face all the decisions she made—good and bad—that led to her last kiss.

I Googled things like: “How long does it take to drown” and “Will a body sink or float after dead” several times. I’m probably on some Homeland Security list somewhere.

Gracefully stumbling toward overdue redemption.

Any scene with Caleb in it was a blast. I have a serious soft spot for well-meaning stoners. In particular, the chapter titled Cheater was fun to write. You’ll have to read to find out why!

Eep!!! Dream come true much? I actually already picked my three leads for a post on YAReads.com, but I’ll share with you guys too since I heart them oh so much.

Gabriella Wilde as Cassidy Haines (She’d need to dye her hair, but I loved her in Carrie.)

Cody Christian as Ethan Keys (He plays Aria’s brother Mike on PLL, so I really hope he isn’t A!)

Austin Butler as Caleb Turner (The Carrie Diaries may have been canceled, but my obsession with this boy will go on!)

An entire playlist of theme songs will be revealed on Day 11 (Friday, June 6th) of the My Last Kiss Blog Tour over at Lady Reader's BookStuff! But if I had to pick one that best summed up Cassidy’s story it would be "Suggestions" by Orelia. The lyrics are dead on…pun semi-intended.