Book Review: Towering by Alex Flinn

Towering by Alex Flinn

My Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars

Publication Date: May 14th 2013 by HarperTeen

Blurb:  At first, I merely saw his face, his hands on the window ledge. Then, his whole body as he swung himself through the window. Only I could not see what he swung on.
Until, one day, I told my dream self to look down. And it was then that I saw. He had climbed on a rope. I knew without asking that the rope had been one of my own tying.

Rachel is trapped in a tower, held hostage by a woman she’s always called Mama. Her golden hair is growing rapidly, and to pass the time, she watches the snow fall and sings songs from her childhood, hoping someone, anyone, will hear her.

Wyatt needs time to reflect or, better yet, forget about what happened to his best friend, Tyler. That’s why he’s been shipped off to the Adirondacks in the dead of winter to live with the oldest lady in town. Either that, or no one he knows ever wants to see him again.

Dani disappeared seventeen years ago without a trace, but she left behind a journal that’s never been read, not even by her overbearing mother…until now. 

My Review:

**I received a copy of this book from HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review.**

Alex Flinn is the author of two of my all time favourite fairy tale re-tellings,A Kiss In Time and Bewitching.While I didn't like Beastly much even though it was the book which made her popular among YA lovers,the two aforementioned titles managed to impress me, enough for me to put her in my "top modern re-telling authors of all time" list.(Yes,I actually have a list like that conjured up somewhere in my mind)   

So after Bewitching, it was quite natural that I'd have high hopes for Towering right?Even though I saw a few negative feedbacks from some of my most trusted bloggers,I didn't let that waver my enthusiasm.After all,I know quite a few people who didn't like A Kiss In Time at all but that didn't stop me from loving every minute of it!But sadly,that was not the case with this one.For me,it was one of those books which I was trying too hard to like but then,after remembering the real reason why I actually read books,stopped trying and just let myself go with the flow.The idea of the story itself was great,but I just felt that it wasn't utilized enough to make the story enjoyable as a whole.

The characters,on the other hand,were a bit better portrayed in comparison to the storytelling.But again,just like I mentioned before,they were still not utilized enough.It's a bit like when you make a dish with your own recipe but forget to put in the secret key ingredient which gives the dish its spark.So it just turns out to be plain and a bit bland as well. THAT,is exactly how I felt when reading Towering,like I was biting onto a steak which had all its juice leaked out.You get what I mean right?

There isn't much more to say about Towering seeing that I didn't like the book and since I try to avoid snark in most of my reviews,I prefer to keep them short and simple when they're negative.However,if you would really like to get your hands on a good Rapunzel re-telling,I'd suggest that you try Rapunzel Untangled by Cindy C. Bennett.Even though it was a relatively shorter read and comes from a smaller publisher,it is an absolutely adorable and a wonderfully refreshing story.

However,if you're still willing to give Towering a shot,I'll be having a giveaway soon.It will probably be a giveaway with one of my upcoming reviews of another Harper title where you will have to order that title to enter as your main entry but I'm not sure yet.But check back on the blog from time to time if you're interested.

Other Reviews for this Book: 

Mel@TheDailyProphecy
Benji@TheNonReluctantReader
Kate@TheBookaholicBlurbs


                                                       

Blog Tour: Chantress Guest Post by Amy Butler Greenfield + Giveaway!!

 

 **P.S this post was supposed to go up on Saturday but blogger failed me yet again with its poor abilities in putting up scheduled posts on time so here it is, a day later. :( **

Hi guys!I am so excited to be a part of the Chantress blog tour,hosted by Shane@ItchingForBooks.

For my stop I've got an awesome guest post from the author on worldbuilding and of course,a giveaway as well.You can check out the rest of the tour stops here.

 

About Chantress :

Lucy’s Chantress magic will make her the most powerful — and most hunted — girl in England.

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.” This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing — and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses — women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

Release date: May 7th 2013

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Purchase: Amazon

 

About the author :

 

Amy Butler Greenfield was a grad student in history when she gave into temptation and became a writer. Since then, she has become an award-winning author. 
Born in Philadelphia, Amy grew up in the Adirondack Mountains and later studied history at Williams College, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Oxford. She now lives with her family in England, where she writes, bakes double-dark-chocolate cake, and plots mischief.

Official links: www.amybutlergreenfield.com | twitter.com/ab_greenfield

Book Trailer :

 

Amy's world building guest post :

 

Chantress is the story of a girl who sings magic in a world that forbids it—and finds herself in the middle of a life-and-death struggle for the future of her country.  Its setting is an unusual one, based on a time and place that stole my heart long ago: London in the 1600s.

 

The London part is easily understood.  After all, I’m far from the first to fall for that ancient and endlessly fascinating city.  But why the 1600s?  Compared with the popular Tudor and Victorian periods, the seventeenth century languishes, almost a forgotten era in fiction.

 

And yet it’s one of the most gloriously intriguing centuries ever.

 

Mind you, I didn’t always see it that way.  For a long time, the 1600s just meant Pilgrims and Puritans to me—worthy but not hugely engaging.  But the century came alive for me when I read The Witch of Blackbird Pond, set in Connecticut in the 1680s  How could I not be interested in a time and place that had witch hunts and seafaring and spirited, rule-breaking girls? 

 

It was only when I came to study history in England, however, that I really fell in love with the 1600s.  What an extraordinary—and dangerous—time to be alive!  Terrorists almost blew up Parliament and the King.  Civil War raged.  The first coffeehouses were springing up, and chocolate and tea were brand new.  Alchemists abounded.  Scientists were working out the mysteries of the universe.  And the women—oh, the women!  They were spies and playwrights and actresses and artists and travelers.  They had nerves of steel.  They were women of wit and laughter and fire.

 

Chantress’s London is based on this world. It’s a London of twisty streets and half-timbered houses and secret passageways beneath great mansions.  Just like the real 1660s London, it has clockmakers, apothecaries, engravers, street criers, alley brats, and dapper aristocrats. 

 

Some of the great landmarks of London are there, too, including the River Thames and the Tower of London and its ravens.

But there is one truly vital distinction between this London and the real one:  In Chantress, there is magic. 

 

In Chantress’s world, the King and his Court really are blown up—and a cruel Protector uses magic to seize control of England.  Using terrifying creatures called the Shadowgrims, he holds the kingdom hostage.  He destroys all magic-workers who might have a chance of defeating him, except one—a girl who’s been hidden out of his reach.  A girl who doesn’t even know she’s a Chantress… until she sings.

 

If you read Chantress, it’s my wish that you’ll slip as easily into this world as I did.  I’d love to have you experience the danger and romance and mystery of its streets—to shiver when the fog rolls in, to feel a surge of fear when a Shadowgrim draws close.  And when the book ends, I’m hoping a small piece of seventeenth-century London might just have a hold on your heart, too.

  

GiVeaWaY!!

Every tour stop on the Chantress blog tour comes with a giveaway!!!And mine's no different.Use the rafflecopter below to enter.

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An Insight Of The Characters' World: Guest Post + Giveaway by Emma Pass

This is a feature where I ask authors to do a guest post discussing about the world building of their books and share their experiences in creating the world for their characters.For more information on this feature,click HERE.

Today,Emma Pass stops by at Daydreaming Bookworm to discuss about the world building of her debut,ACID.Thanks for stopping by,Emma!

ABOUT ACID:


2113. In Jenna Strong’s world, ACID – the most brutal, controlling police force in history – rule supreme. No throwaway comment or muttered dissent goes unnoticed – or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a bloody crime she struggles to remember.

The only female inmate in a violent high-security prison, Jenna has learned to survive by any means necessary. And when a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID – and to uncover the truth about what really happened on that dark night two years ago.

 

  




ABOUT EMMA:

Emma Pass has been making up stories for as long as she can remember. Her debut novel, ACID, will be published in 2013, followed by another stand-alone thriller for young adults in 2014. By day, she works as a library assistant and lives with her husband in the North East Midlands.

Links:

Website
 
Blog

Twitter

Facebook




Emma's guest post:


ACID – An Insight of the Character’s World



Writing a novel set in the future is a tricky business, because often, you’re writing about things that don’t exist (yet). In one way, this is very freeing and exciting, as you can make everything up – literally anything can happen! But in another, it’s quite scary, because you can’t expect your readers to just believe whatever you tell them. Even a future world has to follow its own logic, and be plausible. With ACID, I wanted to create a version of Britain that reflected the brutality of ACID and how much it might be possible for a country to change over the span of a century, yet it had to be believable – familiar, even – so that the worldbuilding didn’t pull readers out of the story because it didn’t feel ‘right’.

I started with the politics, trying to work out how a police force as ruthless as ACID (which stands for The Agency for Crime Investigation and Defence) could have taken over from the government and got into power – then hung onto it for so long. I wrote pages and pages of notes, as well as looking back at notebooks from when I tried to write earlier versions of the book that didn’t work out.

I decided that the UK of 2113 would no longer have a monarchy, so I renamed it the Independent Republic of Britain, which reflects the way ACID have cut the country off from the rest of the world to ensure their power is absolute. At this stage, I read up on North Korea, where the authorities have done this in real life. North Korean citizens don’t even have access to the internet; instead, government officials have created their own intranet, loading information onto it so no-one sees anything they don’t want them to – something which, when people read ACID, they will see I drew on directly.

Next, I had to figure out the implications of this for the ordinary people who lived under ACID’s rule. At the time I started to write the book, there was a big outcry in the ‘real world’ about the UK becoming a ‘nanny state’, where everything people did was micro-managed by the government. For example, did you know that in 2009, the Shetlands, a tiny collection of islands north of the Scottish mainland, apparently had more CCTV cameras than the San Francisco police department?

So I tried to imagine what life would be like if this was truly taken to the extreme, with ACID watching your every move: deciding where you live, what sort of education you get, what sort of job you have, what food you can eat (and what you can’t), what sort of clothes you can wear, even how much TV you have to watch every day and who you marry – a process called LifePartnering, which people go through at 16. Everything depends on your social class, which, again, is decided by ACID, who’ve even gone as far as dividing up London, still the country’s capital city, into sections where people are placed according to their status. If you step out of line, punishment is swift, and terrifying. ACID have created super-prisons where you can be sent for the slightest infringement. Even hugging someone of the opposite sex who isn’t your LifePartner could result in you being arrested – and sent down without a trial. And as for the people they want to get rid of forever… well, you’ll have to read the book to find that out!

Creating ACID’s world was interesting and, at times, quite scary, as I began to see how easy it would be for a real-life dystopian society to develop. And it was fun, too – as a reader, I’ve always loved the ‘what if’ posed by these sorts of novels, and it was great to have the chance to create my own.  

 

 Giveaway!!!

Emma is giving away a signed copy of ACID to one INTERNATIONAL winner.Enter using the rafflecopter below and see TERMS AND CONDITIONS on rafflecopter widget for the rules.
  
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Book Review : Acid by Emma Pass

ACID by Emma Pass

My Rating: 4 Of 5 Stars

Publication Date:  April 25th 2013 by Corgi Children's Books/Random House Children's Publishing (UK)

Blurb:  2113. In Jenna Strong’s world, ACID – the most brutal, controlling police force in history – rule supreme. No throwaway comment or muttered dissent goes unnoticed – or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a bloody crime she struggles to remember.

The only female inmate in a violent high-security prison, Jenna has learned to survive by any means necessary. And when a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID – and to uncover the truth about what really happened on that dark night two years ago.

My Review:

** I received an Advanced Reading Copy/Uncorrected Proof of this book from Random House U.K in exchange for an honest review.**

With a bad ass heroine like Lara Croft and a fast paced plot like Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider series,ACID is one debut that you definitely must keep an eye on when it comes out!

Dystopia has now become quite a dangerous genre to base your story on,given the rise in competition on that particular genre.At least,that's what I think.Even more so in the YA group.When you've read so many books on a particular genre,it eventually becomes hard to handpick an exceptionally good one out of them.I think the thing that goes wrong most of the time is that the authors focus too much on world building and lose track of the story itself.

But thankfully,in ACID,the author was able to maintain that balance.While giving a well descriptive insight of a dystopian Britain,she also puts in some serious action,making it the perfect dystopian thriller for the YA crowd.The romance was also there,but to a minimum,letting us concentrate more on the action and suspense.

The story also had a good character building,though most of them,other than the protagonist herself,did not seem to have much big of a role.Not that I minded.I'm sure you wouldn't have either if every other scene you read from the book went on a bit like this:

I bring my arm up and pivot sideways so that,as Creep tries to grab me,he's thrown off balance and staggers against the worktop.Before he can recover I spin and kick out,planting my left foot squarely in his stomach.He doubles over with a strangled-sounding Oof. Then,as he tries to straighten up and get hold of the edge of the worktop, I lace my hands together and bring them down hard on the back of his neck.As he cracks his chin on the tiles at my feet,he gives a yelp of pain that rails off into a whimper.

'I tried to warn you,' I say, my throbbing skin and thumping head momentarily forgotten. 'Maybe you'll listen to me next time,huh?'

I push my foot into his neck to emphasize my point.Coughing,he rolls onto his back,trying to twist away from me.Blood - his own - is streaming down from his mouth; he must have bitten his tongue when he smashed his chin against the floor.

'What're you in here for, anyway?' He mumbles thickly, spitting red froth.

'You really wanna know?' I say.

He nods.

I lean down until our faces are so close we could kiss.

'I killed my parents,' I murmur, and watch his eyes go wide.

 

                                                                     -Excerpt taken from an uncorrected proof and may differ from the finished copy.

 

You'll definitely love ACID if you liked the Alex Rider series,Throne Of Glass or even The Paladin Prophecy.I really hope that ACID gets turned into a movie one day like Divergent or City Of Bones,because that would just be so awesome!

P.S Keep an eye on the blog for the next few days because the next post will be an awesome guest post by Emma Pass and you'll also get a chance to win a signed copy of ACID.North American readers,this just may be your golden opportunity because ACID won't hit shelves there until 2014.So don't miss out!
 

An Insight Of The Characters' World: Guest Post + Giveaway by Cat Winters

This is a feature where I ask authors to do a guest post discussing about the background of their books and share their experiences in creating the world in which the characters are portrayed.For more info on this feature,click HERE.

 Today,Cat Winters stops by to share her insights on her upcoming debut,In The Shadow Of Blackbirds.Thanks for stopping by,Cat! :)

IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS by CAT WINTERS

In 1918, the world seems on the verge of apocalypse. Americans roam the streets in gauze masks to ward off the deadly Spanish influenza, and the government ships young men to the front lines of a brutal war, creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black watches as desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort, but she herself has never believed in ghosts. During her bleakest moment, however, she’s forced to rethink her entire way of looking at life and death, for her first love—a boy who died in battle—returns in spirit form. But what does he want from her?

Featuring haunting archival early-twentieth-century photographs, this is a tense, romantic story set in a past that is eerily like our own time.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: 

Cat Winters was born and raised in Southern California, near Disneyland, which may explain her love of haunted mansions, bygone eras, and fantasylands. She received degrees in drama and English from the University of California, Irvine, and formerly worked in publishing.

Her debut novel, IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS—a YA ghost tale set during the World War I era—is coming April 2, 2013, from Amulet Books/ABRAMS. She currently lives outside of Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two kids. 






  

CONTACT INFO:
 
Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/catwinters   
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/catwinters 
Facebook:   http://facebook.com/catwintersbooks
Website:   http://www.catwinters.com


 Here is Cat's guest post for today's feature.

IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS isn’t a typical historical ghost story. It doesn’t take place in a decrepit old manor house rising out of the gloom of an English moor. The setting is a very specific moment in time: October and November 1918, during the last weeks of World War I and the height of the deadly Spanish influenza pandemic that killed millions of people around the globe.

My main character, Mary Shelley Black (named after the author of FRANKENSTEIN), travels from Portland, Oregon, to live with her aunt in San Diego, California, after watching her father get arrested for treason. There’s an atmosphere of fear and paranoia gripping America. Anyone who speaks out against the war is at risk of arrest. Anyone who catches the flu might die within hours. Encountering the ghost of her first love is only one of the many reasons Mary Shelley is trying to keep hold of her courage and sanity.

After researching 1918 America in depth, I realized I was dealing with a real-life version of a dystopian/apocalyptic setting. I decided to draw out the science-fiction elements of the time period. One of the first scenes that came to me was the opening chapter, in which Mary Shelley boards a train. I envisioned a crowded railroad car populated by passengers wearing flu masks, with only their eyes visible. Onions were a popular folk remedy used to fight off the flu germs, so I smelled the potent fumes of onions in the air and imagined Mary Shelley making her way past all the watchful eyes in her quest to find a seat. When a woman sneezes, Mary Shelley holds back on saying “gesundheit,” for the word is German, and Americans were fighting Germany. She’s worried she might go to jail for seeming un-American, like her father.

To add richer layers to my otherworldly atmosphere, I continuously drew upon reports of the 1918 flu and all the homemade flu remedies. Some people sprinkled sulfur over hot coals to try to chase away the germs, creating a smelly, eerie blue smoke—which seemed perfect for a paranormal funeral scene in the novel. I read accounts of coffins piling up in front of undertakers’ homes and children climbing on the caskets as if they were playing in a fortress—chilling details that also went into the book.

In the research archives of the San Diego History Center (http://www.sandiegohistory.org), I learned about a Red Cross House that was opened for recovering war veterans in November 1918. Two scenes that are important to the story’s central mystery take place in that convalescent home. I merged the archives’ descriptions of the building with my own interpretation of what the men recuperating there would have looked like and how the place would have smelled and sounded. Those chapters became some of my favorite parts of IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS, and even though those sections of the book were more grounded in the real, living world, they contain their own touch of the novel’s surreal atmosphere.

There are also scenes involving the ghost—a troubled, terribly haunted eighteen-year-old soldier named Stephen Embers. Those moments usually occur at night, and most of the tension and fear my main character endures were drawn from my own experiences of lying in bed after reading a scary book or watching a frightening movie, my heart thumping so loudly until it sounded like a second heart beating inside my mattress. The aunt with whom Mary Shelley lives can’t afford electricity, so most of the ghostly encounters occur by the light of an oil lamp, or in pitch darkness…as all frightening ghost scenes should.

Atmosphere and world building are an essential part of submerging one’s readers into a story. I hope you enjoy your journey into Mary Shelley Black’s dark and dangerous historical world and feel I’ve fully transported you to this strange, sad, and fascinating period in time—even if it makes you want to leave your own lights on at night. 

 
GIVEAWAY:
 
Cat is giving away a signed swag pack containing a bookmark, postcard, and bookplate, as well as a clock-gear necklace inspired by the jewelry that technology-loving Mary Shelley Black wears in the novel (All pictured below) to one lucky INTERNATIONAL winner.Giveaway is international.Enter via the rafflecopter below and please check the TERMS AND CONDITIONS on the widget.Good Luck! :)

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An Insight Of The Characters' World: Guest Post + Giveaway by Kelly Hashway

This is a feature where I ask authors to do a guest post discussing about the background of their books and share their experiences in creating the world in which the characters are portrayed.For more info on this feature,click HERE.

Today,Kelly Hashway stops by at my blog to share her experiences in creating the characters' world for her debut YA novel,TOUCH OF DEATH,which comes out on January 15th.Here's a bit of info on herself and TOUCH OF DEATH.

TOUCH OF DEATH by KELLY HASHWAY

 Jodi Marshall isn't sure how she went from normal teenager to walking disaster. One minute she's in her junior year of high school, spending time with her amazing boyfriend and her best friend. The next she's being stalked by some guy no one seems to know.
After the stranger, Alex, reveals himself, Jodi learns he's not a normal teenager and neither is she. With a kiss that kills and a touch that brings the dead back to life, Jodi discovers she's part of a branch of necromancers born under the 13th sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus. A branch of necromancers that are descendants of Medusa. A branch of necromancers with poisoned blood writhing in their veins.
Jodi's deadly to the living and even more deadly to the deceased. She has to leave her old, normal life behind before she hurts the people she loves. As if that isn't difficult enough, Jodi discovers she's the chosen one who has to save the rest of her kind from perishing at the hands of Hades. If she can't figure out how to control her power, history will repeat itself, and her race will become extinct.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

I write for children of all ages from picture books up to young adult. I am proudly represented by Lauren Hammond of ADA Management. My debut YA, TOUCH OF DEATH, releases January 15, 2013 through Spencer Hill Press. Also look for my other upcoming YA novels: STALKED BY DEATH (Spencer Hill Press, July 23, 2013), THE MONSTER WITHIN (Spencer Hill Press, April 2014), THE DARKNESS WITHIN (Spencer Hill Press, TBA), and INTO THE FIRE (Month9Books, spring 2014). My debut MG series CURSE OF THE GRANVILLE FORTUNE releases in 2016 through Month9Books.



Contact Info:
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Website

Now here's everything you need to know about how Touch Of Death came in existence.

I guess you can say I stumbled on the idea for Touch of Death. I was researching Greek mythology for another book at the time and came across a lesser-known myth about Medusa and the 13th sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus. First, let me say I didn’t make up the 13th sign of the zodiac. I’ve seen several reviews that question whether or not it’s a real thing. It is. I can’t take credit for it, no matter how much I’d like to. According to myth, Ophiuchus was a healer. His power came from the Gorgon Medusa’s blood, which the goddess Athena gave to him in two vials. One vial contained the blood from the left side of her body, which was poisonous. The other vial contained the blood from the right side of her body, which could restore life. Ophiuchus never used the poisonous blood, but it made me wonder what would have happened if he had.
    

Since I wanted a cast of characters with both abilities, to kill and to restore life, I realized I was working with necromancers, but a different breed of them. I decided that they’d need to be born under the sign of Ophiuchus, so they are all born between November 29 and December 17. But I didn’t want to leave Medusa out of the story. I read many myths about her and realized that she got a bad reputation for no reason. According to some myths, Medusa was cursed by the goddess Athena because Athena was jealous that Poseidon wanted Medusa and not her. I thought this was really unfair and I wanted to portray Medusa as the beautiful and caring Gorgon I now see her as. So my necromancers are descendants of Medusa. Jodi and her friends call themselves Ophi, and Medusa is like a mother to all of them. 

The Ophi live in the world we all know. The difference is that the Greek gods are still around. The Ophi have safe houses to keep them away from humans, since their Gorgon blood is poisonous to humans. And because they are constantly raising souls from the underworld, they are on Hades’ list (and no not his Christmas list). He wants them all dead so he can take their souls and their powers. Like all groups, some Ophi are good and some abuse their powers. Jodi, my main character, questions a lot of the Ophi and how they use their abilities.
 

And that’s how Touch of Death came to be. Did I mention I’m born under the sign of Ophiuchus? 

 

Thank you so much for this awesome insight, Kelly!

And today's post also comes along with a giveaway!Enter below to win a signed copy of Touch Of Death.For terms and conditions please check the rafflecopter widget.Good Luck!
 

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Book Review: Touch Of Death by Kelly Hashway

Touch Of Death by Kelly Hashway

My Rating: 4 of 5 stars


Publication Date: January 15th 2013 by Spencer Hill Press

Blurb:  Jodi Marshall isn't sure how she went from normal teenager to walking disaster. One minute she's in her junior year of high school, spending time with her amazing boyfriend and her best friend. The next she's being stalked by some guy no one seems to know.
After the stranger, Alex, reveals himself, Jodi learns he's not a normal teenager and neither is she. With a kiss that kills and a touch that brings the dead back to life, Jodi discovers she's part of a branch of necromancers born under the 13th sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus. A branch of necromancers that are descendants of Medusa. A branch of necromancers with poisoned blood writhing in their veins.
Jodi's deadly to the living and even more deadly to the deceased. She has to leave her old, normal life behind before she hurts the people she loves. As if that isn't difficult enough, Jodi discovers she's the chosen one who has to save the rest of her kind from perishing at the hands of Hades. If she can't figure out how to control her power, history will repeat itself, and her race will become extinct.

My Review:

**ARC Received from Spencer Hill Press in exchange for an honest review.**

Confession time!!!This ARC had been collecting dust on my shelf for more than a month.A sign that I really need to make a clean schedule for all my review copies.**Sigh** 

But anyway,it's not everyday you find a book that exceeds your expectations.Most of the time I find the exact opposite happening with me.Touch Of Death is quite a wonderful read if you're into Greek mythology.I liked how the author used a little known myth about Medusa and Ophiuchus as the highlight of the story.I for one,am a HUGE fan of Greek mythology and this myth got me really interested.So you can already see why I liked the world building so much.The characters were okay.I wish I could have liked the main character Jodi more,but I guess she wasn't exactly the type of character I usually like.But Alex,on the other hand,was a lot more fun to read about.The other characters were also fit perfectly into their roles,so I did not have any problems with them at all.Though the zombies did give me the creeps,but in a good way,if that even makes sense!

The story itself picks off fast,so you do not have to bother yourself with chapters of boring introductions,but I felt that it wavered a bit in the middle but then picked up its pace again towards the end.

Touch Of Death is what I would call a good quickie read.Highly recommended for fans of Greek mythology,paranormal fiction and zombie apocalypses.Definitely grabbing the sequel!

Check out my blog tomorrow for an awesome guest post by Kelly Hashway and a chance to win a signed copy of Touch Of Death!Don't miss out! :)

Book Review: The Blood Keeper by Tessa Gratton

The Blood Keeper by Tessa Gratton

My Rating: 4 of 5 stars


Publication Date: August 30th 2012 by Double Day

Blurb: For Mab Prowd, the practice of blood magic is as natural as breathing. It's all she's ever known. Growing up on an isolated farm with other practitioners may have kept her from making friends her own age, but it has also given her a sense of purpose - she's protective of the magic, and is able to practice it proudly and happily out in the open with only the crows as her companions. But one morning while Mab is attempting a particularly tricky spell, she encounters Will, a local boy who is trying to exorcise a few personal demons of his own. He experiences Mab's magic in a way his mind cannot comprehend and is all too happy to end their chance meeting. But soon, secrets that were kept from Mab by earlier generations of blood magicians are revealed, and she and Will are drawn back together, united against a dangerous force looking to break free from the earth and reclaim its own dark power.

My Review:

 ** I received a finished copy of this book from Random House U.K in exchange for an honest review.** 

 **Please note that my entire review may be based on a comparison to Tessa Gratton's debut,BLOOD MAGIC,because I just couldn't help it. >.<**

THE BLOOD KEEPER was better than it's first novel, BLOOD MAGIC,in so many ways.It had a lot more vibrant and clear voice in its journal entries and more admirable characters as well.The entire story was not that exceptional but the author managed to spice it up with her way of writing.While we do catch brief glimpses of some of the old characters from BLOOD MAGIC,the entire story focuses on the two new characters,Mab and Will.

At first I was a bit reluctant with this foreign setting as I thought that I might miss the old characters Silla and Nick,but as I proceeded on with the story I found Mab and Will so delightful that by the time I was done,I forgot all about my reluctance.I was more than eager to welcome these new characters to take Silla and Nick's place.

My favourite narrator of the story was Mab.She is one character that I will definitely remember.Her wild personality which later turned tame was much more exciting to read about than Silla's one (Her's WAS a bit morbid.) and she had a lot more interesting tricks up her sleeve.

I'd recommend this to readers who loved Blood Magic and even to those who did not,because trust me when I say that this book is a whole lot different than BLOOD MAGIC.

You can check out my review of BLOOD MAGIC HERE.