Splash into Summer with a Huge #Giveaway!

Splash into summer with great books from your favorite YA authors!

The authors at Darkly Delicious YA have banded together for a huge giveaway. With lots of fun prizes, there's something for everyone.

One lucky winner will receive a $40 gift card.

Plus there are lots of other amazing prizes to be had.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

 

Paranormal Tip Tuesday: Plant Lavender for Luck

Since I have a fascination with all things paranormal, I thought it would be fun to post miscellaneous tips about the paranormal and supernatural on Tuesdays. Most my tips will be on Facebook, so be sure to follow me. 

Today’s Paranormal Tip:

Plant lavender for luck.

Photo Credit

Okay, to be honest, I can’t find any association to lavender and luck other than from the movie Practical Magic. But lavender does have other great benefits. Rub a little lavender oil on your skin or clothes to attract love, carry a little on you to see ghosts, or wear it to protect against the evil eye. Lavender is also used in wish divination. Place lavender under your pillow just before you go to sleep. If you dream about your wish, it’s said it will come true.

Like my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter 
for more tips on the paranormal and supernatural. 

Feature Friday: Shauna from I Love to Read and Review Books

Hi everyone and welcome to Feature Friday.

I’m doing something a little different with my feature today. Shauna from I Love to Read and Review Books and I are doing a blog swap. I’m interviewing Shauna here, and you can learn 10 Fun Fact about Me by bouncing over to her blog. But before you do that, stick around and get to know Shauna.

I’ve been following I Love to Read and Review Books for some time now. Shauna’s reviews are always helpful and she has a ton of giveaways. Just check out her sidebar to see all the amazing prizes you can win.

Please help me welcome Shauna.

Cherie: How did you get started in blogging about books?

Shauna: For me it was a line-upon-line process. I first started with a Facebook group about my family history. Then I learned about blogging so I did a blog about my family history. After that my friend encouraged me to post reviews of the books I was reading on GoodReads. And because I already loved blogging I added a blog for my book reviews.

Cherie: I like how your blogging experience grew into reviewing books. How did you come up with the name of your blog?

Shauna: I wanted my name to literally say what I do. SO...I love to read and review books. And I love emoticons so I added the " :)" to the end. And there you have it...I Love to Read and Review Books :)

Cherie: What is your favorite part about blogging?

Shauna: The authors I get to meet and correspond with AND my followers. My blog wouldn't be what it is without all of them!

Cherie: So true! What type of books do you enjoy?

Shauna: I read and enjoy a wide variety of genres.

Cherie: How many books do you read in a year?

Shauna: I really do "love to read" and so I read A LOT. Now that I have my blog I read even more than ever before. Last year I actually kept track and I read 280 books. This year I have already read 113. We will see if I can beat last years total.

Cherie: That’s amazing! Has blogging about books become a 'job' for you or is it still fun?

Shauna: I get asked this question a lot. Sometimes I take on more books than I really should in a given month and sometimes life gets a little busy with other things...so my family has to be patient as I try to meet all the "deadlines". But over all I am at a point where I read what I want to read and when I want to read it...so it is still REALLY FUN!

Cherie: That’s awesome. When you love to do something, it should never feel like a job. Do you read the whole book or do you skim parts of it?

Shauna: I choose to read every word often including the front and back of the book, the jacket flaps, the acknowledgments, the introduction, etc. I want to be able to stand by the book and not have any surprise words or scenes show up that I didn’t preview. This takes time, but I feel I owe it to the author and my followers.

Cherie: I’m sure that’s one reason your reviews are so helpful to readers. I know I enjoy them. Do you ever give negative reviews?

Shauna: I have chosen to only post positive reviews. If I start a book and find that it just isn't for me I will simply not review it on my blog.

Try to answer the following questions in five words or less:

Cherie: If you start a book that isn't grabbing your attention, how far into the book will you read before you put it down?

Shauna: A couple of chapters.

Cherie: Secret crush?

Shauna: My husband of 32 years started out as a secret crush.

Cherie: If you had all the money and time in the world, where would your dream vacation be?

Shauna: Hawaii..I LOVE it there.

Cherie: Are you a morning person or an evening person?

Shauna: Morning all the way.

Cherie: Favorite place to read?

Shauna: Curled up on the couch.

Cherie: Do you have any hobbies besides reading and family history?

Shauna: Crocheting.

Cherie: Favorite color?

Shauna: Purple.

Cherie: Do you prefer ebooks, paperbacks or hardcover?

Shauna: I am loving ebooks...didn't think I would.

Cherie: Have you written a book yourself or are you planning to in the future?

Shauna: I am only a blogger, not a book author.

Cherie: Do you read the comments on your blog?

Shauna: Yes and I try to answer them too.

Cherie: What advice would you give to new bloggers?

Shauna: Just start posting.

Shauna, thanks for being here with us today!

Connect with Shauna

I Love to Read and Review Books Blog

Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads

Don't forget to bounce over to Shauna's blog to learn 10 Fun Fact about Me.

Blog Tour & Interview: (Once) Again by Theresa Paolo

Welcome to my stop on the (ONCE) AGAIN blog tour. I'm excited to have Theresa Paolo, the author of this exciting new romance, with us today. Theresa was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions. Plus there's a teaser quote and a giveaway. But before all that, let's find out more about (ONCE) Again.

Synopsis: 

Josh will have to reconcile his past…

In order to make Kat his future.

After surviving a real-life nightmare, Josh Wagner is sent home from his dream college on crutches. Bedridden and tormented by flashbacks, he’s just seen his world shattered and his baseball scholarship go up in smoke. Josh’s family hires a health aide to help take care of him, but when he opens the door, the last person he expects to see is his biggest regret…

Katherine Singleton is the only girl Josh has ever loved. Now, even though she’s only taking care of him because it’s her job, Josh is determined to win her back. But Kat had to move on after their breakup two years ago, and despite her feelings for Josh, a lot has happened since he left…

When Kat’s past comes back to haunt her, Josh decides it’s his turn to take care of her. But protecting her—and redeeming himself—will put Josh in the line of fire again. Will he survive this time?

~~~

This sounds like a great summer read, and I can't wait to get my hands on it. 

Now, without further ado, please help me welcome Theresa.

Cherie: Tell us about your novel, (Once) Again, in your own words.

Theresa: In short: Regret, mistakes and forgiveness.  Longer version: Josh’s biggest regret, and first and only love, Kat, shows up on his door step and he has a chance to make things right, but a lot has happened in the two years since they’ve last seen each other.  In order for them to have a future they both need to face the demons of their past.

Cherie: What is your writing process like?

Theresa:  I’m a total pantser. I wing it. I like to do sprints with my critique partners, where we write straight for thirty minutes then check back in with each other. Without those sprints I don’t think I’d ever finish a book.

Cherie: I've never tried "sprints". I'm going to have to remember that. Where did you get the idea for your novel?

Theresa:  (Once) Again is a companion novel to my first novel (Never) Again. (Never) Again came to me after I watched breaking news of a school shooting and I kept wondering what the family of the loved ones were thinking. What happened when they saw the breaking news and the realization that they knew someone in the building set in. While writing (Never) Again Josh’s voice was so strong I just knew I needed to write his story.

Cherie: What was your most difficult chapter to write?

Theresa: The most difficult chapter to write was when Josh finally admits to what really happened in the halls the day of the shooting. I cried writing the scene and still get teary eyed when I read it.

Cherie: Can you share with us something about Josh that we don’t learn about them from reading the book?

Theresa: Josh is pretty much an open book.  

Now that we know about your book and you as a writer, I have some fun questions for you. Try to answer in five words or less:

Favorite color? Purple

Do you believe in love at first sight? On the fence.

Have you ever experienced that head-over-heels, tingly, have-to-get-to-know-someone feeling yourself? Yes and we’re still together J

Who are you drawn to the good guy or the bad guy? A combination of both ;)

What’s the first thing you notice about a guy? Eyes

If you had all the money and time in the world, where would your dream vacation be? Toss-up between Italy and Scotland.

Are you a morning person or an evening person? Midday person! lol

Favorite authors? Sarah Dessen, Toni Blake, Marie Force, Simone Elkeles, Susan Mallery, J. Lynn and Cassie Mae

Favorite movie or television show? Dawson’s Creek and Vampire Diaries

Guilty pleasures that get you through the writing/revising process? Coffee, tea in the morning, wine and cosmos at night. Also Cheez its.

Favorite place to write? My parents’ backyard. (It helps that my mom starts making me cosmos)

Who is your mentor (or hero)? My mom

What book are you the most excited to read? Jennifer Armetraut’s Stone Cold Touch and J. Lynn’s Stay With Me

Are there any types of books you don’t read? I’ll give anything a shot!

Thank you Theresa for being here today!

I have a little teaser for you, and then don't forget to enter the giveaway.

Pre-order your copy of (ONCE) AGAIN today

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to visit the other stops on the tour!

Suzi Retzlaff - Post about research

Stephanie Judice - Guest post

Kelley Lynn - Teaser

Julie Reece - Interview

Rachel Schieffelbein - Playlist

Lucy de Angelis Briand

Coleen Burright 

Cassie Mae - Review 

Melissa Giorgio - Meet Josh & Kat 

Jessica Salyer - Review 

Suzanne Van Rooyen - Excerpt

About the author:

Theresa Paolo lives in the same town she grew up in on Long Island, NY with her long time boyfriend and their fish. Her debut novel (NEVER) AGAIN, a NA romance, released in Fall 2013 with Berkley (Penguin). (ONCE) AGAIN will release this summer. She is also the coauthor of the Amazon bestseller KING SIZED BEDS AND HAPPY TRAILS and BEACH SIDE BEDS AND SANDY PATHS, a YA contemporary series, under her pen name Tessa Marie. She has a hard time accepting the fact she’s nearing thirty, and uses her characters to relive the best and worst years of her life. She put her love of writing on hold while she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from Dowling College. When she’s not writing, she’s behind a camera, reading, or can be found on Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook.

Connect with Theresa

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads Pinterest

Cover Reveal: FORGED IN FIRE by Juliette Cross

New Orleans at night can be a magical place. High energy. Hot music. Hotter men.

But there’s a reason this city carries a haunted, mystical aura when the streets clear and the mist rises. There’s a reason one shouldn’t stray too far alone…like I did.

Who am I? Genevieve Drake.

I’m not the helpless kind of girl. Never needed a man to come to my rescue. That is, not until my twentieth birthday when some dude nearly chokes me to death in an alley. A hot stranger saves me by splitting the dude in half, ripping a monster from inside, and then incinerates it into ash.

The hot guy? Jude Delacroix—Dominus Daemonum, Master of Demons. Now my guardian, whether I like it or not. But I’m seriously beginning to like it.

The dude choking me? One of many demons from the underworld trying to abduct or kill my ass. As the prime target of the demon prince, Dante, who has all kinds of lascivious and sadistic plans for me, I now have no problem accepting Jude’s protection.

Why me? I’m a Vessel, one who is born to serve the light but can be corrupted and used as a weapon for darkness. Until that fateful night, I had no idea this world even existed.

Now, I just want to survive it.

COMING JANUARY 2015. SAMHAIN PUBLISHING.

JULIETTE CROSS

WEBSITE         FACEBOOK       TWITTER        GOODREADS

For exclusive excerpts and news on releases and reveals, join Juliette’s newsletter here.

Feature Friday: Becky from Becky's Barmy Book Blog

Welcome to Feature Friday, a place to get to know the person behind the blog.

Becky’s Barmy Book Blog is a wonderful place to stop by if you’re looking for something new to read. Her reviews are well thought out and honest. She’s recently started the meme Thursday’sThoughts where she discusses different topics with her followers, so be sure to check it out. Plus, she has this really cute Hedgehog that always makes me smile. That’s him below.

Okay, I’ve rambled enough. Let’s meet Becky.

Cherie: How did you get started in blogging about books?

Becky: I had been following a few blogs and always liked the idea, but ultimately I was looking for a way of keeping a record of all the books I read. I had odd notebooks with lists of books in but from the titles only I couldn’t remember much about these books, so I decided to set up a blog. That way I could write a little summary and review of each book and keep track of everything I read. It was purely for me, but as I started to gain more followers I realized it was also an excellent way to network with other bloggers and readers.

Cherie: How did you come up with the name for your blog?

Becky: I love alliteration, always have. My name is obviously Becky and it was a Book Blog but ‘Becky’s Book Blog’ seemed a bit boring. So I started playing with other words beginning with B like ‘Brilliant’ but that sounded like I was a bit full of myself, I tried a mixture of words, but I then thought of Barmy – people often tell me I’m a bit mad so I thought that would be perfect.

I didn’t realize that Barmy wasn’t a universal word though and have had quite a few questions as to what it means. So to make it clear Barmy means mad, quirky, unusual.

Cherie: You know, right when I saw barmy I knew you were from the UK. J What type of books do you enjoy?

Becky: I am quite open with my tastes but I mostly read YA, especially Paranormal and Dystopian books. Hunger Games, Divergent and Morganville Vampires are my favourites. But I also like some Contemporary, Katie McGarry and Sarah Dessen are fabulous for that. But I also enjoy Fantasy and Adventure. As long as it’s not super creepy scary or rude I’ll read it.

Cherie: Do you like when your favorite books are made into movies, and why?

Becky: I just had a discussion post about this on my blog. 99% of the time I love it when my favourite books are made into films, but they have to be done really well and be quite faithful to the books. Harry Potter and Hunger Games for example – all expertly done. It just gives you another way of immersing yourself into the story, and bringing those characters you love to life.

But I do get quite nervous when films of my favourite books are announced just in case they ruin it, like Eragon – they destroyed that movie!

Cherie: I saw that post, and I couldn’t agree with you more! If you could choose to be any character from a book, who would it be and why?

Becky: I would love to be Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter. She is a lot like me anyway, but she isn’t afraid to be herself and doesn’t care what others think of her – I would love that freedom of thought to just be myself. She also does some truly kick butt magic and has a really good attitude. Plus she gets to go to Hogwarts! 

Cherie: Luna is a great character. Try to answer the following questions in five words or less:

If you start a book that isn’t grabbing your attention, how far into the book will you read before you put it down?

100 pages

Who’s your favorite book mom?

Molly Weasley from Harry Potter

Who’s your favorite book dad?

Desmond Edgley from Skulduggery Pleasant

Secret crush? (It can be anyone real or fictional.)

At the moment – no one

Do you believe in love at first sight?

I thought I did

Have you ever experienced that head-over-heels, tingly, have-to-get-to-know-someone feeling yourself?

Yes

Are you drawn to the good guy or the bad guy?

Good guy but still mischievous

What’s the first thing you notice about a guy?

Eyes or smile

If you had all the money and time in the world, where would your dream vacation be?

America, especially Disneyworld Florida

Are you a morning person or an evening person?

Evening

Favorite author?

Too hard to pick one

Favorite place to read?

Anywhere and Everywhere!

What book are you the most excited to read?

Right now – The One by Kiera Cass

Do you have any hobbies?

I do, apart from reading – Trampolining, Jujitsu, Ballroom Dancing and High Board Diving.

What movie would make a great book?

Miss Congeniality – Hilarious!

It’s your birthday, and your friends got you a giant cake. What character do you hope pops out of your cake and what book is he/her from?

No thanks - Jumping out of cakes is creepy!

Thanks so much for being on my blog!

Connect with Becky from Becky’s Barmy Book Blog

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads