Mundie Moms

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Book Review: The Vampire Stalker


Published by Scholastic
Released on June 1st, 2011 TODAY
Source: Book from publisher to review
4 stars- I really enjoyed it

What if the characters in a vampire novel left their world--and came into yours?

Amy is in love with someone who doesn't exist: Alexander Banks, the dashing hero in a popular series of vampire novels. Then one night, Amy meets a boy who bears an eerie resemblance to Alexander. In fact, he IS Alexander, who has escaped from the pages of the book and is in hot pursuit of a wicked vampire named Vigo. Together, Amy and Alexander set out to track Vigo and learn how and why Alexander crossed over. But when she and Alexander begin to fall for each other, Amy wonders if she even wants him to ever return to the realm of fiction.

I was hooked on this story from the moment I met it's main character Amy. Like many of us, Amy has her favorite book series that she obsesses over. When she's not reading the book she hits the forums to talk about her favorite fictional crush, and about what's going to happen in the upcoming release. Not that I could even remotely relate to this *cough, cough* Like any obsessed fan who can't wait to get our hands on the next sequel of our favorite series, Amy and her friends meet up early one morning to pick up the highly anticipated sequel to the series. At this point in the story I'm totally snickering to myself realizing that I'm reading about a teen version of myself and I'm totally loving Amy's story. But, unlike Amy, my fictional crush doesn't appear in real life. Not that I have a fictional crush or anything...

Amy's fictional crush come to life is none other than the angst filled, vampire stalker Alexander Banks from her favorite series, Otherworlds. What I liked about this unique plot was that Alexander is not only from a world of paranormal characters, but he's from a completely different era. Alexander and Amy's worlds collide when Alexander follows the the notorious vampire Vigo through a portal that lands them both in modern day Chicago. Even though Amy is infatuated with Alexander as a character, she has a hard time believing he's really real, even after he saves her after Vigo attacks her.

I really liked that the settings for both worlds is set in Chicago, one in the 1920's and present day. I thought Allison did a fantastic job at explaining how it was possible for a writer's characters and story could come to life. I enjoyed the book despite the few times I felt there were a few things missing in the story. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and I felt Amy was really relatable. Alexander has all the mannerisms I'd except from someone in the 1920's and it was a little comical at how Amy explains technology to him. I liked their sweet romance and the manner in which Alexander treated Amy was what you'd except from his era. I was surprised with how much I enjoyed the story. It's a fun, unique read with a good ending. Amy's voice is witty and charming. I'd recommend this book to both tween and YA readers.

The Iron Knight Cover Reveal


All I can say is....hell-ooooooooooo Ash!! Harlequin Teen has done an amazing job with these covers and I'm so glad that they polled fans on their facebook page. Because, this is the model I chose. I think most of us did.

Okay, stop staring at his very icy eyes and go download the free, e-novella Summer's Crossing. We need a little Puck to balance out that delicious stare. No, I'm not looking at Ash...not anymore...maybe just one little glance.

What a great way to start off June, MMs.

Guest Post with Nightspell author Leah Cypess

Today we have the privilege of having Nightspell author, Leah Cypess on our blog to talk about the differences between writing YA & Adult books.


There are many opinions out there about the differences between adult and YA books, but in my opinion, the differences are growing blurrier – to the point where I’m not entirely sure it still makes sense to try to define them.

When I wrote Mistwood and Nightspell, I thought I was writing for adults. In my mind, high fantasy (fantasy that takes place in a completely made-up world) is an adult genre – probably because all the books I read in that genre growing up were adult books. Of course, the fact that I was reading them starting from age 10 could have hinted that this wasn’t entirely correct. I suspect those books always had a large teen readership.

The main problem with Mistwood, when I finished it, was that it was too short – 70,000 words, while I was told that the minimum word count for an adult fantasy was 100,000 words. But around that time, I read Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox, a complicated fantasy with significant adult POV characters that was published as YA. That was when I realized that Mistwood could actually be YA, and once I started submitting it as a young adult novel, I got an offer within a few months.

When I made the decision to call it YA, I submitted Mistwood as is – I didn’t make any changes aside from putting the words “young adult” in my query letter. Once the manuscript was accepted, we did make a few changes… mostly aging the characters down by a year or two, but also cutting down on the worldbuilding a little bit. Basically, though, the manuscript remained exactly the same. I honestly think there’s not much difference between YA and adult these days, except for the requirement of the main character’s age.

Waiting On Wednesday

Today's WOW are our picks for this month's Book Of The Months.

Our Spotlight Book of The Month:

By Sarah Rees Brennan
Published by Simon and Schuster
To Be Released on June 14th, 2011

The Goblin Market has always been the centre of Sin's world. She's a dancer and a performer, secure in her place. But now the Market is at war with the magicians, and Sin's place is in danger. Keeping secrets from the market she loves, struggling with a friend who has become a rival, Sin is thrown together with the Ryves brothers, Nick and Alan - whom she's always despised. But Alan has been marked by a magician, to be tortured as the magician pleases, and as Sin watches Alan struggle to protect the demon brother he loves, she begins to see both brothers in a new light. But how far will brother go to save brother - and what will it cost them all?

With the cliff hanger ending in The Demon's Covenant, I can only imagine what will happen next. I'm a little sad this series is ending, but I'm looking forward to jumping back into this world with Nick and Alan.

Our Debut Book Of The Month:

By Myra McEntire
Published by Egmont USA
To Be Released on June 14th, 2011


One hour to rewrite the past . . .

For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn’t there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She’s tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson’s willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he’s around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?


Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.


This is already one of my favorite debut releases this year! Myra has created a refreshing, unique YA story and I'm really looking forward to reading the next book in the series.You can join our BOTM discussions here.


June's YA Releases

There are a lot of fabulous summer reads being released this month. Here's a list of some must have books:

June 1st:

* Summer's Crossing by Julie Kagawa
* Ashes, Ashes by Jo Treggiari
* Eternal Sea by Angie Frazier
* She Loves You, She Loves You Not by Julie Anne Peters
* The Vampire Stalker by Allison Van Diepen
* Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
* Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach

June 2nd:

* Forgiven by Janet Fox

June 7th:

* Blood Red Road by Moira Young
* HEREAFTER by Tara Hudson
* Possession by Elana Johnson
* My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody
* Don't Stop Now by Julie Halpern
* Everlasting by Alyson Noel
* Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck

June 14th:

* Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan
* Passion by Lauren Kate
* Trial By Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
* Hourglass by Myra McEntire
* Countess Nobody by Lynn Kiele Bonasia
* Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma

June 21st:

* Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter
* Dead Rules by Randy Russell
* A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young
* Witches of the East End by Melissa de la Cruz

June 28th:

* Fins Are Forever by Tera Lynn Childs
* Luminous by Dawn Metcalf
* The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder
* Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

If I missed any YA releases, please leave me a comment and I'll add it to the list.

Hourglass & Luminous Blog Tours!

This month we have the privilege of hosting two official blog tours for debut authors Myra McEntire and Dawn Metcalf. Both tours start today, and below you'll find their scheduled tour stops, which you can also find on our Blog Tour page here. Thank you to all the wonderful bloggers are taking part in each tour.

We are so excited to be hosting the official blog tour for debut author Myra McEntire. Over the course of the next couple of weeks fans will be introduced to Myra, her characters, and the world of Hourglass through author interviews, character interviews, book reviews and more.


Be sure to visit the following sites through out the month of June:


Hourglass

Egmont USA


For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn't there; swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She's tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.


So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson's willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.


Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he's around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?


Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.


June 1st-30th

June 1st- The Secret Life of a Bibliophile, Interview with Myra

June 3rd- Reading Teen, review

June 5th- Pager Turners, Interview with Michael

June 7th- Girls in the Stacks, Interview w/ Myra

June 9th- Novel Novice, Review of HG

June 11th- Reading Teen, Interview with Myra

June 13th- The Story Siren, review

June 14th- Eve's Fan Garden, Interview with Myra

June 15th- Eve's Fan Garden, Review

June 16th- Beth Revis, Interview with Myra

June 17th- Late Bloomers, Interview with Myra

June 18th- Novel Thoughts, review

June 20th- Mundie Moms, review

June 22nd- Mundie Moms, interview with Kaleb

June 26th- Novel Novice, Interview with Myra

June 28th- Pager Turners, Review

June 30th- Live Author Chat w/ Myra on Mundie Moms

July 1st- Pure Imagination blog, giveaway


It's a PreOrder Hourglass Giveaway! Make sure you stop by Myra's blog to find out how to enter to win not only a Hourglass poster from Egmont, but and iPod, signed swag and more.


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We are so excited to be hosting the Luminous Blog Tour for Dawn Metcalf!!


Luminous

Dutton Books/Penguin


When sixteen-year old Consuela Chavez discovers that she can remove her skin, revealing a lustrous mother-of-pearl skeleton, she slips into a parallel world known as the Flow; a place inhabited by archetypal teens with extraordinary abilities. Crafting skins out of anything – air, water, feathers, fire – she is compelled to save ordinary people from dying before their time. Yet now someone is murdering her new friends, one by one, and Consuela finds herself the focus of an intricate plot to end the Flow forever when all she really wants is to get back home, alive.


Be sure to stop by and visit each site as they will all have a letter included in their post. At the end of the blog tour visit Dawn's site to unscramble your letters to win some fantastic prizes. Each blog stop will either be sharing their review, an interview with Dawn, or have a character interview. Be sure to visit these sites here:

3rd- Fantastic Book Review- Author Interview
7th- Mundie Moms- Character Interview, Consuela
9th- Books with Bite- Review
11th- Steph Su Reads- Interview
13th- The Book Smugglers- Review
15th- The Compulsive Reader- Character Interview, V
17th- Mindful Musings- Review
19th- The Book Butterfly- Interview
21st- Reading In Color- Review
23rd- Electrifying Reviews- Author Interview
25th- Mundie Moms- Review
27th- The Story Siren- Review
29th- The Book Cellar- Author Interview
30th- Blog Wrap with Dawn Metcalf

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