BOOKLOVERSPARADISE is proud to be part of the blog tour for

HERE

ON THE OTHERSIDE, BOOK ONE

by author

DENISE GROVER SWANK

published by 

Bramagioia Enterprises

blog tour organized by

AToMR BOOKS

about the book:

Sixteen year old Julia Phillips buries herself in guilt after killing her best friend Monica in a car accident. Julia awoke in the hospital with a broken leg, a new talent for drawing and false memories of the accident, in which she dies and Monica lives. The doctors attribute this to her head injury, but no one can explain how a bracelet engraved with her name ended up at the scene of the accident. A bracelet no one has ever seen before.

Classmate Evan Whittaker paid Julia no attention before the accident, let alone after. Now suddenly he’s volunteering to tutor her and offering to drive her home. She can’t ignore that his new obsession started after his two-day disappearance last week and that he wears a pendant she’s been drawing for months. When the police show up one night looking for Evan, he begs Julia to run with him, convincing her that Monica is still alive. Julia agrees to go, never guessing where he’s really from.

sounds pretty intense doesn't it?  Well guess what?  We happen to have an excerpt from the book....read on...

HERE Excerpt 

I run from the school, down the street a half-mile and turn the corner down the two-lane highway that edges town. I ignore the ache in my leg that creeps up my thigh. My hair grows slick and heavy from the rain. My thin long-sleeved t-shirt plasters to my body. 

I push on despite the stitch in my side and the now-sharp pain in my leg. The gray stone church tucked into the edge of the woods comes into view. It’s my beacon, my anchor. Tears stream down my face and blend with the rain, which now falls at a steady rate. My breath comes in desperate pants, yet I refuse to slow down, refuse to stop until I’m there. 

My feet crunch against the gravel of the church parking lot and my gait falters. A black wrought-iron fence lies ahead. My hands fumble with the latch of the gate until it opens. The hinges creak as I rush through, toward the back of the cemetery where the fence and trees are almost one. I run past the older headstones, past the newer compact markers until I drop. The soft ground absorbs the impact as my knees hit the earth. I fall face forward before Monica’s headstone. 

“It should’ve been me,” I cry, my hands grasping the edges of the cold, slick stone. Gut-wrenching sobs rack my body. The rain falls harder, pelting my back. 

Warm hands wrap around my arms, pulling me off the ground. My body turns and my face presses into a firm, warm chest. I’m enveloped inside the opening of a warm coat. I sink into the warmth, my legs barely holding me upright. A voice whispers in my ear, “It’s okay, Julia. I’m here now. Everything’s going to be okay.”

A sharp pain stabs my neck and then there’s nothing.

if you are still onboard, we have a giveaway for you..

first things first, though.

Check out the link for other stops on the blog, other excerpts, reviews and other giveaways...

http://atomrbookblogtours.wordpress.com/2012/01/04/here-on-the-otherside-1-tour/

I love this cover...it just looks so spooky and mysterious.

Now, about the author...

Denise Grover Swank lives in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. She has six children, three dogs, and an overactive imagination. She can be found dancing in her kitchen with her children, reading or writing her next book. You will rarely find her cleaning. Denise is represented by Amanda Luedeke of MacGregor Literary.

You can find out more about Denise and her other books at www.denisegroverswank.com or email her at denisegroverswank@gmail.com You can also follow her on Twitter: @DeniseMSwank or  friend her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deniseswank

Now for the giveaway...

super easy

just leave your name, email address and what ebook format you would like

If you don't feel comfortable leaving your email address, you can send your information to

ljldml@gmail.com

a quick review:

I like books that are different.  This was just such a book.  A great story that doesn't really end.  

  

The characters are fascinating.  Julia is somewhat of an enigma throughout the story, but the guys...ooohhh la la!!!

Evan and Reece....perfect male characters.  I hope Julia ends up with Reece,  or Evan,  no Reece,  no make that Evan.  Well I'll be happy as long as she ends up with one of these guys. :)  No spoilers in this review, but as you can guess, a bit of a triangle involving the main characters.  

I'm waiting anxiously for book two.

4 stars

Kill Me Softly

by Sarah Cross

Egmont USA

available April 10 2012

received from NetGalley for review

synopsis (Goodreads)

Mirabelle's past is shrouded in secrecy, from her parents' tragic deaths to her guardians' half-truths about why she can't return to her birthplace, Beau Rivage. Desperate to see the town, Mira runs away a week before her sixteenth birthday—and discovers a world she never could have imagined.

In Beau Rivage, nothing is what it seems—the strangely pale girl with a morbid interest in apples, the obnoxious playboy who's a beast to everyone he meets, and the chivalrous guy who has a thing for damsels in distress. Here, fairy tales come to life, curses are awakened, and ancient stories are played out again and again.

But fairy tales aren't pretty things, and they don't always end in happily ever after. Mira has a role to play, a fairy tale destiny to embrace or resist. As she struggles to take control of her fate, Mira is drawn into the lives of two brothers with fairy tale curses of their own . . . brothers who share a dark secret. And she'll find that love, just like fairy tales, can have sharp edges and hidden thorns

MY REVIEW

When I was a kid, I used to watch a Saturday morning cartoon called "Fractured Fairy Tales" where a funny dog explained to a small boy the true stories behind some of the fairy tales we read as children.

This book puts an entirely new spin on the 'fractured fairy tale' idea.  All I can say is WOW.  I really, really liked this book.  

The main character is a 15 year old girl who was raised by her godmothers (get it?) far away from her homeland.  She is protected from everything.  She can't even use a pair of scissors because the godmothers are afraid she may get hurt.  Sound familiar?  Well, this isn't a Disney story.  

She goes to a town called Beau Rivage to look for the gravestones of her deceased parents.  She meets all sorts 'cursed' individuals who also lead not so fairy tale lives. A beautiful girl whose stepmom wants her dead, a 'prince' who must wait for his princess and wake her with a kiss, and several other bizarre characters.  

Not really a spoiler, but I have to add this part. I must have a warped sense of humor because I found this just hilarious.  Two sisters who tried to 'make the shoe fit'. One cut off her big toe, and the other chopped off a piece of her heel.  They limp around town with bandages of their feet.

 By the way, forgot to mention, the main character's name is Mirabelle.  How's that for a fairy tale name?

The one part of this book that truly bothered me, Mirabelle, at 15 years of age contemplates having a relationship with an older man.  He is Felix, the manager of a local casino.  He is also a strange fairy tale character in this bizarre group of characters..  I know, I'm probably just a prude, but the idea of a 15 year old girl sleeping with a 21 year old guy just bothered me.  

Anyways, I loved this story. Loved the characters.  They were colorful and downright fun.  I had to laugh at Beauty and Snow White, while cringing at the character of the beast.  I loved the prince who comes to the rescue, but.....my favorite character?  Blue.  Wait till you read his story.  He's a funny, wise mouthed, snarky kid who tries hard to keep everyone at arms length.  

Overall, this is an incredible book.  A wonderful story with an idea so different from everything else on the bookshelves right now!

I think most YA and teens would love this book.  The characters are wonderful, and the writing is just amazing.

GRAVE MERCY

HIS FAIR ASSASSIN

BOOK ONE

BY 

ROBIN LaFEVERS

RECEIVED FROM NETGALLEY FOR REVIEW

AVAILABLE NOW

Published byHoughton Mifflin Harcourt

synopsis (Goodreads)

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf? 

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others. 

Ismae's most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

MY REVIEW

 I have always been a fan of historical fiction, especially the medieval era.  

why be the sheep when you can be the wolf?

I love this line.  It's what initially drew me to this book.

This book is amazing!  Ismae is a strong female lead.  She is not a weak willed woman.  First she is abused by her stepfather, sold into a marriage to a man who is also abusive and is led to a place where she can learn to be strong and independent.  The independent streak was already present.  Ismae is a character you can believe and relate to, she knows how to take care of herself, and she learns how to defend and protect herself. In other words, she is one kick ass heroine!!

This is a long book.  Over 500 pages.  It becomes slow and long winded in spots.  Took me a few days to read, but once I started...wow!  

Look at the cover of this book.  This is exactly how I picture Ismae.  A fierce warrior.

The author is a master at colorful descriptions.  The lifestyles and surroundings of Ismae are so cleverly detailed, the reader can 'see' what is happening while reading.

This is a story you will not quickly forget.  I look forward to more works by R.L LaFevers. 

Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage

The Titanic, her Passengers and their World

by

Hugh Brewster

received from NetGalley for review

synopsis (goodreads)

Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage takes us behind the paneled doors of the Titanic’s elegant private suites to present compelling, memorable portraits of her most notable passengers.  The intimate atmosphere onboard history’s most famous ship is recreated as never before. 

   The Titanic has often been called “an exquisite microcosm of the Edwardian era,” but until now, her story has not been presented as such. In Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage, historian Hugh Brewster seamlessly interweaves personal narratives of the lost liner’s most fascinating people with a haunting account of the fateful maiden crossing. Employing scrupulous research and featuring 100 rarely-seen photographs, he accurately depicts the ship’s brief life and tragic denouement, presenting the very latest thinking on everything from when and how the lifeboats were loaded to the last tune played by the orchestra. Yet here too is a convincing evocation of the table talk at the famous Widener dinner party held in the Ritz Restaurant on the last night. And here we also experience the rustle of elegant undergarments as first-class ladies proceed down the grand staircase in their soigné evening gowns, some of them designed by Lady Duff Gordon, the celebrated couterière, who was also on board.

      Another well-known passenger was the artist Frank Millet, who led an astonishing life that seemed to encapsulate America’s Gilded Age—from serving as a drummer boy in the Civil War to being the man who made Chicago’s White City white for the 1893 World Exposition. His traveling companion Major Archibald Butt was President Taft’s closest aide and was returning home for a grueling fall election campaign that his boss was expected to lose. Today, both of these once-famous men are almost forgotten, but their ship-mate Margaret Tobin Brown lives on as “the Unsinkable Molly Brown,” a name that she was never called during her lifetime. 

       Millionaires John Jacob Astor and Benjamin Guggenheim, writer Helen Churchill Candee, movie actress Dorothy Gibson, aristocrat Noelle, the Countess of Rothes, and a host of other travelers on this fateful crossing are also vividly brought to life within these pages. Through them, we gain insight into the arts, politics, culture, and sexual mores of a world both distant and near to our own. And with them, we gather on the Titanic’s sloping deck on that cold, starlit night and observe their all-too-human reactions as the disaster unfolds. More than ever, we ask ourselves, “What would we have done?”

MY REVIEW

With the 100th anniversary of Titanic's tragic ending upon our doorstep, this is a fitting book to be released now. It centers on the first class passengers of the famed ship. Their lives before and (for those who lived) after the sinking. This is a highly readable and enjoyable book. It is immediately obvious that a great deal of research went into the writing of this book.

A wonderful addition to the many books about Titanic. Fitting for the anniversary year.

Goddess Interrupted

by
Aimee Carter

published by Harlequin

Available March 2012

synopsis (Goodreads)

Kate Winters has won immortality. But if she wants a life with Henry in the Underworld, she'll have to fight for it.Becoming immortal wasn't supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she's as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he's becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate's coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.Henry's first wife, Persephone

MY REVIEW

A good story.  This book is a continuation of The Goddess Test.  It begins after Kate's visit to Greece.  She returns to Henry (Hades) and spends a great deal of the book whining about Henry's first wife, Persephone. (Does he love me as much as her? )  

I love the mythology aspect of this book, however, I enjoyed the first book more.  I did like the killer ending...a cliffhanger that ensures another book in the series.  (No Spoilers here!)  

If you liked the first book, you'll like this one.  I did like it, just not as much as the first.