Darlene's Book Nook: January 2013

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Printed Books Giveaway Hop: February 1st to 7th (Canada/US)

Hi, everyone!

Welcome to Stop #110 of the Printed Books Giveaway Hop!

This blog hop is being hosted by Kathy at I'm A Reader, Not A Writer.

Over 100 blogs are offering a printed book giveaway, and we are all linked up together so that you can easily hop from one giveaway to another! The hop runs from Friday, February 1st through Thursday, February 7th.

Details of my giveaway:

Since Valentine's Day is just around the corner, I thought I would offer up a Paranormal Romance.

This is a "like new" (read once) paperback that I received for review from the publisher.

I really enjoyed this one. I rated it 4/5 stars. Click HERE if you would like to see my review.

TITLE: Kiss of Surrender
SERIES: Deadly Angels, Book #2
AUTHOR: Sandra Hill
PUBLISHER: Avon Books
PUBLICATION DATE: November 27, 2012
FORMAT: Mass Market Paperback, 384 pages
GENRE: Paranormal Romance
ISBN: 9780062064622

It's not easy being a Vampire Angel.

No one knows that better than Trond Sigurdsson. In the centuries since he last went out drinking and wenching with his Viking buds, Trond has been a gladiator, a cowboy, a ditch digger . . . even a sheik. But now he's the baddest of them all: a kick-ass Navy SEAL kicking butts of terrorist immortals with the help of his hotter-than-Hades female partner, police officer-turned-Special Forces operative Nicole Tasso--whom Trond dearly hopes to "partner" with very shortly in a whole different way.

The "cop" part of Nicole tells her there's something bizarre about her gorgeous godlike teammate. But her "all-woman" side can't help wondering how great it would be to have a virile Viking in her bed. Trond has secrets galore, but Nicole feels certain she can dig them out--and really get to the heart of this powerful, unnerving stranger whom she may be risking her soul to love.

Since I am shipping this book myself, I am going to have to limit this giveaway to Canada/US mailing addresses only.

Rules:

You may enter only once!
You must be 18 years of age or older.
You must be a follower of Darlene's Book Nook on Google Friend Connect (see widget on the left-hand side or the link at the top of this column).
The giveaway will end on Friday, February 8th at 12:00 AM, Central Standard Time.
Rafflecopter will choose the winner using Random.org.
The winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to claim the prize.
If a prize is not claimed within 48 hours, a new winner will be selected through Rafflecopter.

To enter this giveaway, fill in the Rafflecopter entry form below. This giveaway will end at 12:00 AM EST on February 8, 2013.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
And don't forget to keep hopping for more chances to win:

Book Blitz and Giveaway: The Crescent Chronicles by Alyssa Rose Ivy

Hi, everyone!

I am pleased to participate in the Book Blitz hosted by Xpresso Book Tours for Alyssa Rose Ivy's The Crescent Chronicles.

About Alyssa:

Alyssa Rose Ivy is a Young Adult and New Adult author who loves to weave stories with romance and a southern setting. Although raised in the New York area, she fell in love with the South after moving to New Orleans for college. After years as a perpetual student, she turned back to her creative side and decided to write. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and two young children, and she can usually be found with a cup of coffee in her hand.

CONNECT ONLINE WITH ALYSSA:
Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

One lucky winner will win a digital copy of Alyssa's New Adult Paranormal Romance, Flight.

TITLE: Flight

SERIES: Crescent Chronicles, Book #1
AUTHOR: Alyssa Rose Ivy

PUBLISHER: Alyssa Rose Ivy

PUBLICATION DATE: August 15, 2012

FORMAT: E-book, 270 pages

GENRE: New Adult Paranormal Romance
ASIN: B008XL12IW

Sometimes you just have to take flight.

A summer in New Orleans is exactly what Allie needs before starting college. Accepting her dad’s invitation to work at his hotel offers an escape from her ex-boyfriend and the chance to spend the summer with her best friend. Meeting a guy is the last thing on her mind—until she sees Levi.

Unable to resist the infuriating yet alluring Levi, Allie finds herself at the center of a supernatural society and forced to decide between following the path she has always trusted or saving a city that might just save her.

Buy Links:

Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Excerpt:

We walked through the French Quarter slowly, and I tried to take it all in. The music, the crowds, and the atmosphere still felt surreal. Music spilled out of the endless bars and clubs.

“Wow, are those people seriously dressed up as vampires?” I asked, looking in at a dark bar on the corner. Inside I watched a man and woman holding up a chalice and smiling with fangs showing.

Levi laughed. “If you think those people are weird, you’d be freaked out by the real thing.”

“The real thing? Very funny.”

“What, you don’t think vampires are real?”

“No, and I’m glad they aren’t.”

“Why? Do they scare you?” Levi stopped walking, and turned me to look at him.

“Does the thought of blood sucking monsters scare me? Hell yes. Who wouldn’t be scared of that? ”

He laughed again even louder. “Trust me sweetheart, in New Orleans vampires are the least of your worries.”

“What do you mean?” Something about the glint in his eyes made me feel a little uneasy.

Levi’s face turned into a faint smile. “I’m really glad you asked that.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

“Okay, listen, scaring me isn’t a good way to get me interested, so if you have any weird tricks up your sleeve just shelve them.” I wondered if this was the time to tell him I avoided horror movies like the plague.

“No tricks, hon.” Levi pulled his phone out of his pocket and texted a few times.

I continued my people watching. I’d never seen so many middle-aged people laughing and partying before. It almost felt like the twilight zone.

Levi slipped his phone back in his pocket. “We’re meeting everyone over at Club 360.”

“What’s that?”

“The lounge on the top of the World Trade Center down by the river.”

“Okay, is it a cool view?”

“Yeah, it’s got a good view.” Levi laughed again and I had the distinct impression he was hiding something from me.

“You promise you aren’t luring me into some trap?”

“A trap? No. Let’s just call it a new experience.”

My stomach dropped. What the heck did I get myself into?

TITLE: Focus

SERIES: Crescent Chronicles, Book #2
AUTHOR: Alyssa Rose Ivy

PUBLISHER: Alyssa Rose Ivy

PUBLICATION DATE: January 31, 2013

FORMAT: E-book, 331 pages

GENRE: New Adult Paranormal Romance
ASIN: B00B55WWV4

Sometimes you just have to take flight.

A summer in New Orleans is exactly what Allie needs before starting college. Accepting her dad’s invitation to work at his hotel offers an escape from her ex-boyfriend and the chance to spend the summer with her best friend. Meeting a guy is the last thing on her mind—until she sees Levi.

Unable to resist the infuriating yet alluring Levi, Allie finds herself at the center of a supernatural society and forced to decide between following the path she has always trusted or saving a city that might just save her.

Buy Links:

Amazon

To enter the giveaway, please fill out the Rafflecopter entry form below.

This giveaway is open worldwide until 12:00 AM CST on
February 8, 2013.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Haruki Murakami Reading Challenge

Hi, everyone! Time for a 2013 Reading Challenge!!

This challenge is being hosted by tanabata at In Spring it is the Dawn.

Here are the details copied from the challenge blog:

Haruki Murakami Reading Challenge

This is the sign-up post for the Haruki Murakami Reading Challenge 2013. If you've taken part before, the challenge "rules" are essentially the same. And as always, the goal of the challenge is simply to encourage you to discover, or re-discover, the unique story-telling of Haruki Murakami. It's a really flexible challenge and all you have to do to participate is read at least one book by Haruki Murakami in 2013. However, there are several levels of participation to choose from, for those that want to immerse themselves more in Murakami's surreal worlds.

Levels of participation:

Hajime - Read one book

Sheep Man - Read 3 books

Toru - Read 5 books

Nakata - Read 7 books

Sumire - Read 10+ books

Super-frog - Read everything Murakami has written! (that is available in English, or your preferred language) For a list of the books available in English, visit the Books Page.

Things to keep in mind:

*Whether you're a complete newbie, or already a huge Murakami fan, everyone is welcome to join in.

*You can join in anytime throughout the year.

*Feel free to grab one of the Murakami Challenge badges to display on your own site, but please save them to your own computer first.

*You don't have to have a blog to participate. You can also share your thoughts on Goodreads, LibraryThing, Tumblr, Twitter, etc. Or provide a guest post here!

*Crossovers with other challenges are allowed.

*Books should be read between January 1st and December 31st, 2013.

*Please share your reviews of the Murakami books you read for the challenge. This is optional but we'd love to hear what you thought. I also welcome you to submit reviews to any of Murakami's books or stories that you have read and reviewed previously. Reviews in any language are welcome. More on the 'Submit a review' page.

*Books can be in any format: paper, ebooks, audio.

*Rereads are allowed, and encouraged.

*There will be prizes (details to be decided).

And most importantly, have fun!

If you would like to join me in the challenge, click on the challenge badge at the beginning of this post.

This is a new-to-me author, so I am aiming for HAJIME (read 1 Haruki Murakami book).

I will keep track of my progress below:

IQ84

Jodi Picoult Reading Challenge

Hi, everyone! Time for a 2013 Reading Challenge!!

This challenge is being hosted by Rachael at Rachael Turns Pages.

Here are the details copied Rachael's blog:

Jodi Picoult Reading Challenge

Reading Challenge Details:

The Challenge will run from January 1st, 2013 to December 31st 2013

All Jodi Picoult books started and finished after January 1st count

The goal is to read or reread as many Jodi Picoult books as possible. The Levels will be below you can choose which level you would like to be in.

Book can be in any format (bound, ebook, audiobook)

You can list your books in advance or list them as you go. It is not required that you review the books you read for this challenge, but if you do great.

Re-reads and crossovers from other reading challenges are allowed and encouraged.

Post this reading challenge on your blog to track your progress. Please include a link back to this sign-up post so others can join the reading challenge too. You do not have to be a book blogger to participate; you can track your progress on Goodreads or LibraryThing.

Levels:

Fresh out of college Lawyer: 1 to 4 novels

Ruling this courtroom: 5 to 8 novels

Being a Lawyer is my thing: 9 to 12 novels

(Sorry for the cheesy names, but she has a lot of courtroom scenes)

Jodi Picoult Books

Songs of a Humpback Whale

Harvesting the Heart

Picture Perfect

Mercy

Plain Truth

Salem Falls

Perfect Match

Second Glance

My Sister’s Keeper

Vanishing Acts

The Tenth Circle

Nineteen Minutes

Change of Heart

Handle with Care

House Rules

Sing You Home

Lone Wolf

Between the Lines

The Storyteller (February 2013)

If you would like to join me in the challenge, click on the challenge badge at the beginning of this post.

I have a few of these on my TBR list. I am aiming for FRESH OUT OF COLLEGE LAWYER (read 1-4 Jodi Picoult novels).

I will keep track of my progress below:

The Storyteller
My Sister's Keeper
Sing You Home

Review Copy Cleanup 3.0: February 2013 #RCCleanup

Hi, everyone! Time for a 2013 Reading Challenge!!

This challenge is being hosted by Vicky at Books, Biscuits and Tea.

Here are the details copied Vicky's blog:

Review Copy Cleanup February 2013

Guidelines:

Review Copy Cleanup 3.0 runs from 1 to 28 February

It starts and ends at midnight in your local timezone to avoid confusion

To sign up, just fill in the linky below. Link to your sign up post directly, please! The linky is the same for both our blogs, so you only have to sign up once.

The Linky will close on the 15th, so make you sign up before then.

When you post your sign up post on your blog, either include the challenge button with your post or link it back to this article so that people know where to sign up. Thanks! (:

Every book you received for review counts towards the challenge, both e-books and hard copies (even audio books for review if you have those), including all genres and lengths.

Feel free to use the #RCCleanup hashtag on Twitter for your RCC related tweets or join the Twitter party at http://tweetchat.com/room/RCCleanup and meet lots of awesome bloggers (:

At the end of every week we will post our personal updates, and we’ll include a linky for you to add yours!

If you would like to join me in the challenge, click on the challenge badge at the beginning of this post.

I will keep track of my progress below:

Waiting on Wednesday: Always Watching by Chevy Stevens

Hi, everyone!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Here is this week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection:

TITLE: Always Watching

AUTHOR: Chevy Stevens

PUBLISHER: St. Martin's Press

EXPECTED PUBLICATION DATE: June 18, 2013

FORMAT: Hardcover, 352 pages

GENRE: Mystery

ISBN: 9780312595692

As a psychiatrist, Nadine Lavoie has a true desire to help people put their demons at rest, but she has demons of her own, some she can barely think about, and some she can’t even remember. Nadine’s mother was a wildly unpredictable manic depressive, her father an alcoholic, and there are whole chunks of Nadine’s life that are black holes. It takes all her willpower to tamp down her recurrent claustrophobia, and her daughter, Lisa, is a runaway who has been on the streets for eight years.

After she’s attacked outside her office, Nadine decides to take a job at a hospital in Victoria as a staff psychiatrist. It’s the perfect opportunity: She won’t get as attached to her patients and she’ll be closer to her daughter. But when a distraught woman, Heather Simeon, is brought in to the Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit after a suicide attempt, Nadine gently coaxes her story out of her—and learns of some troubling parallels to their lives. Digging deeper, Nadine is forced to confront her own history, and the damage that began when she and her brother were brought by their mother to a remote commune on Vancouver Island. What happened to Nadine? Why was their family destroyed? And why does the name Aaron Quinn, the group’s leader, bring complex feelings of terror to Nadine even today?

As the dual stories unfold, Nadine finds herself drawn to uncover her own secrets and learn why you can sometimes leave the past, but you can never escape…

I am a big fan of this Canadian author! I absolutely loved Still Missing, her debut, and I can't wait to read this one!!

What are you waiting on? Please leave a comment in the section below. If you participate in this meme, please leave a link so I can visit your blog!

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Book Review: Undead by Kirsty McKay

TITLE: Undead

SERIES: Undead, Book #1
AUTHOR: Kirsty McKay

PUBLISHER: Chicken House
PUBLICATION DATE: September 1, 2012 (first published 2011)

FORMAT: Hardcover, 272 pages
GENRE: Young Adult, Horror
ISBN: 9780545381888

Out of sight, out of their minds: It's a school-trip splatter fest and completely not cool when the other kids in her class go all braindead on new girl Bobby.

The day of the ski trip, when the bus comes to a stop at a roadside restaurant, everyone gets off and heads in for lunch. Everyone, that is, except Bobby, the new girl, who stays behind with rebel-without-a-clue Smitty.

Then hours pass. Snow piles up. Sun goes down. Bobby and Smitty start to flirt. Start to stress. Till finally they see the other kids stumbling back.

But they've changed. And not in a good way. Straight up, they're zombies. So the wheels on the bus better go round and round freakin' fast, because that's the only thing keeping Bobby and Smitty from becoming their classmates' next meal. It's kill or be killed in these hunger games, heads are gonna roll, and homework is most definitely gonna be late.

Combining the chill of The Shining, the thrill ride of Speed, the humor of Shaun of the Dead, and the angst of The Breakfast Club, Kirsty McKay's Undead is a bloody mad mash-up, a school-trip splatter-fest, a funny, gory, frighteningly good debut!

MY REVIEW:

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive any compensation for my review, and the views expressed herein are my own.

In one word: Entertaining!

With its slapstick humour, Undead reminds me of one of those cheesy B-horror movies. A group of teenage kids are on a field trip in Aviemore, Scotland, and their school bus pulls into the Cheery Chomper café (how appropriate!) for a bite to eat. The heroine of the story, Bobby, is a bit of a loner. She was originally from London, and then her family moved to the United States. Now her family has relocated to Scotland. The American kids made fun of her British accent, and now the Brit kids make fun of her American accent! A girl can’t get a break! She decides she would rather stay on the bus and eat her bagged lunch than feel like a loser sitting by herself. The teacher, Mr. Taylor, tells Rob Smitty, the class rebel, that he will be staying on the bus with him as punishment for trying to buy alcohol and smokes with a fake ID. Smitty convinces Mr. Taylor to go into the café to buy him a sandwich, which leaves Bobby and Smitty alone on the school bus with the driver. Alice Hicks, the resident pretty girl, comes running out of the restaurant claiming that everyone is dead. Of course, Bobby and Smitty think that she’s overreacting and a bit of a lunatic. That is, until, they see Mr. Taylor stumbling towards the school bus with arms stretched out and blood dripping down his chin.

Along the way, the kids run into other survivors and they band together. They have to be resourceful to stay one step ahead of the monsters trying to kill them. Bobby’s strength and courage makes her a great heroine, and Smitty is just crazy and reminds me of Shaggy from Scooby-Doo who always acts as the bait in a diversion. Alice is snarky and annoying, and I am sure that Bobby and Smitty were tempted to leave her behind on more than one occasion! Despite their differences, they do manage to work together. It was a fun and light read that held my interest but be forewarned: The book ends on a bit of a cliff-hanger.

I have to add that I love the cover! It adds to the comic horror feel of the book, and I love that it is a girl that is holding the bloody ax!

This is McKay’s debut novel, and I am looking forward to reading the sequel, Unfed, which is expected to be released in September 2013.

MY RATING:

3 stars!! It was good, and I enjoyed it! A big thanks to Scholastic Canada for the opportunity to review this book!

This book qualifies as:
#6 for my 2013 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge
#6 for my 2013 Read-a-Latte Challenge
#3 for my 2013 Let Me Count The Ways Reading Challenge: Book Version
Bonus #2 for my 2013 Where Are You Reading? Challenge
Book #2 of Category #4 for my 2013 Global Reading Challenge

#2 for my 2013 Quick Fix Challenge

#2 for my 2013 ARC Reading Challenge

#5 for my 2013 Women Challenge
#4 for my New Authors Challenge 2013
#4 for my 2013 Reading Challenge: First-Reads
#4 for my 2013 1st In A Series Challenge
#6 for my 2013 Books-in-a-Series Reading Challenge

#4 for my 2013 Free Reads Challenge

Monday, January 28, 2013

Young Adult Giveaway Hop: January 29th to February 4th (Canada/US)

Hi, everyone!

Welcome to Stop #171 of the Young Adult Giveaway Hop!

This blog hop is being hosted by Kathy at I'm A Reader, Not A Writer and BookLove101.

Over 200 blogs are offering a Young Adult giveaway, and we are all linked up together so that you can easily hop from one giveaway to another! The hop runs from Tuesday, January 29th through Monday, February 4th.

Details of my giveaway:

This is a "like new" (read once) Advance Review Copy that I received for review from the publisher.

An Advance Review Copy is NOT for resale! By entering my giveaway, you are agreeing to NOT sell the ARC!

I really enjoyed this one. I rated it 4/5 stars. Click HERE if you would like to see my review.

What happens when happily ever after... isn’t?

Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.

And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.

Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale.

Since I am shipping this book myself, I am going to have to limit this giveaway to Canada/US mailing addresses only.

Rules:

You may enter only once!
You must be 16 years of age or older.
You must be a follower of Darlene's Book Nook on Google Friend Connect (see widget on the left-hand side or the link at the top of this column).
The giveaway will end on Tuesday, February 5th at 12:00 AM, Eastern Standard Time.
Rafflecopter will choose the winner using Random.org.
The winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to claim the prize.
If a prize is not claimed within 48 hours, a new winner will be selected through Rafflecopter.

To enter this giveaway, fill in the Rafflecopter entry form below. This giveaway will end at 12:00 AM EST on February 5, 2013.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

And don't forget to keep hopping for more chances to win: