Do Not Take Your Dragon To Dinner by Julie Gassman; Illustrations by Andy Elkerton

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Capstone for the opportunity to read Do Not Take Your Dragon to Dinner by Julie Gassman with illustrations by Andy Elkerton! Do not take your dragon to dinner has cute, colorful and charming illustrations that are full of expression. The rhyming text flows well and the repetition will be fun for listeners to join in on while being read to. In the middle of the story, the dragon begins to learn manners and will someday take you to dinner! Great fun and deserves 5 stars for an adorable and bright book that I plan on buying for my own grandchild!

Other Breakable Things by Kelley York and Rowan Altwood

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the opportunity to read Other Breakable Things by Kelley York and Rowan Altwood! The beginning dropped my heart into my stomach. Immediately after, the story goes back three years and shows a mother waking her son, Luc, because there’s a heart available for his needed transplant. Back to the present beginning with Chapter One and Evelyn’s point of view. Then the chapters alternate between Luc and Evelyn. Evelyn has returned to town with her mother and, once again, they live with Evelyn’s grandmother. Luc and Evelyn were friends three years ago and when she moved away they kept in touch fairly well, until the past four months when Luc hadn’t replied to any of Evelyn’s emails. Luc has been dealing with transplant recovery and therapy but he doesn’t want Evelyn to pity him, so he doesn’t explain this to her. He has kept his sickness from her and she has no idea why he doesn’t feel well and no idea that he has undergone transplant surgery. While reading, we learn about what Luc has been through and what Evelyn’s life has been like. They have both kept things from each other. Now they try to rekindle their friendship and both want to be more than just friends, but they are afraid of scaring the other one off if they share their secrets. Luc doesn’t feel that it’s fair to Evelyn to become involved when he’s not sure how long he will be around and Evelyn has always kept her problems to herself. Little by little, they overcome their obstacles and are able to spend time together on an adventurous road trip to Oregon. I grew to love Luc and Evelyn and cared for their future together. Other Breakable Things is a wonderful love story with a heartfelt touch and appreciation for how short life can be; 5 stars!

Foxlowe by Eleanor Wasserberg

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review. 3.5 stars!
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Books for the opportunity to read and review Foxlowe by Eleanor Wasserberg. The prologue starts with past events that will be explained later by the narrator. The prologue also gives the reader a glimpse into the past, present and future lives of some of the characters. The story is told in parts – Part One “Green”(past), Part Two “Jess” (present), Part Three “Green” (past). Green and Jess are different names for the same person and she is the narrator of the story. The people that live at Foxlowe all have two names; their Outside name that they came to Foxlowe with and their new name that they were given when they arrived at Foxlowe. The people that reside at Foxlowe are a cult type of society with initiation that causes injury. This initiation is also used as enlightenment, which I see as punishment and it involves stabbing your skin with multiple nails until bleeding occurs. The controlling leaders are strange and have insecurity issues and possible psychological issues. The details of the story are vague at some points and, as a reader, I am not sure how the people came to Foxlowe and how they keep getting members, such as Blue (the infant that shows up in the story). The author’s prose is beautiful and descriptive with the characters’ attributes and the surroundings of Foxlowe, but the point of the lifestyle was never explained. The tone is dark and abusive and I am sure more evil occurred behind the scenes due to the way the leaders treated the children. The Epilogue was a nice conclusion showing the future of Green and how Foxlowe had become a tourist spot. Beautiful writing but a very odd story- 3.5 stars.

Book Blitz for At First Blush by Beth Ellyn Summer

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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At First Blush
by Beth Ellyn Summer
Genre: YA Contemporary
Release Date: April 4th 2017
Bloomsbury Spark

Summary:

Who would have thought that a teenager could have a successful career creating makeup tutorial videos on YouTube? For Lacey Robbins, this dream has been her reality. An up-and-coming YouTuber, she has thousands of fans and can’t wait for the day when her subscriber count reaches the one million mark. And when she is offered a high school internship at On Trend Magazine, she figures that this could be the make it or break it moment.
But sometimes your dream job isn’t all that it seems. Her editor is only interested in promoting junk products, and her boss in the Hair and Makeup department introduces her to the larger world of makeup artistry, making her wonder if making tutorials online is all she is meant to do. To top it all off, when the magazine’s feature subject, musician Tyler Lance, turns his broodingly handsome smile her way, falling for him could mean losing her fans, forcing her to make a decision: her YouTube life or her real life?

Fans of Zoella’s GIRL ONLINE will fall right into the world of this YA DEVIL WEARS PRADA and stay hooked from the first blush to the last glossy kiss.

 

Add to Goodreads

 

Buy Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple | Kobo | Google Play | Bloomsbury

 

On April 3rd, the Author will be having a FB Book Launch Party from 6-10PM EST! There will be fun, games, and giveaways!

Book Launch Party

About the Author

Beth Ellyn Summer writes contemporary young adult fiction that somehow always includes the following elements: fame, makeup, and television. She graduated from Long Island University with a degree in Print and Electronic Journalism. Interning for Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Fallon was the highlight of her college years. When she’s not writing, Beth can be found swatching eyeshadows, solving Wheel of Fortune puzzles, and playing with her adorable cat, Penny Belle. Beth lives on Long Island in a cookie cutter town that, in an ironic twist of fate, doesn’t have a single decent bakery.

 

Author Links:

Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook│Pinterest│Instagram

 

Book Blitz Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

YA Bound Tour Button

The Winter’s Spite by Rebekah L. Purdy

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The Winter’s Spite by Rebekah L. Purdy continues the story of Salome. She’s living in the
Faerie realm and learns that her grandmother Doris isn’t well. Salome goes back to the human world to say goodbye to Doris and that’s when Salome learns about her true past and origin. The swearing is more prominent in this book than the rest of the Winter People series and it was a bit out of character for Salome, so it detracted from the story. I am glad the author finished the series with the twists, action and dynamic characters continuing throughout all three books. 4 stars for this fun and thrilling fantasy fiction!

A Kissing Hand for Chester Raccoon

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tanglewood Press for the opportunity to read and review A Kissing Hand for Chester Raccoon by Audrey Penn! This classic children’s book has been transformed into a board book edition, with the same message as The Kissing Hand. Simple and beautiful illustrations, sketched and and brought to life with watercolor, represent the loving relationship between a mother and her son. She’s trying to build his security and self confidence by giving him her gift of a kissing hand. I remember reading this book to my own children years ago and the comfort that it gave them and me is still memorable. 5 stars!

The United States of Absurdity by Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Ten Speed Press for the opportunity to read and review The United States of Absurdity: Untold Stories from American History! This book is separated into six different sections: Great American Characters, The Best of American Sports, Great American Medical Breakthroughs, Very Bad American Ideas, When Americans Go Wrong and American Tails. Also included is a conclusion and an index. Disturbingly funny and morbidly fascinating, this interesting book grossed me out, made me laugh out loud and gave me the heebie jeebies! 4 stars for this nonfiction book with an adult sense of humor and content!

Confessions of the Very First Zombie Slayer (That I Know Of) by F.J.R. Titchenell

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
Thanks to YA Bound Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review Confessions of the Very First Zombie Slayer (That I Know Of) by F.J.R. Titchenell! This is a humorous story about Cassie and her discovery of zombies and how she dealt with this not-so-great turn of events. While she travels across the country with friends, she spends the time pondering how the zombies came to be and observes how each person deals with the tragedy in their own way. Cassie’s personality makes the story funny and lightens the dystopian mood. 4 stars for this action packed fun zombie story!

Losing Kyler by Siobhan Davis

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
Losing Kyler by Siobhan Davis, is the second book of The Kennedy Boys series and broken hearts are as prominent as the dysfunction in this family. More secrets come out into the open and cause more family distress, along with one of Kyler’s brothers being accused of rape. Faye shows extreme maturity and true empathy for the situation that her mother and her new guardian James found themselves in many years ago. I appreciate how open minded she tries to be and this shows that she is wise for her age. Her wisdom helps everyone else deal with their struggles. This second book has so much going on that it is intense reading! Siobhan Davis pulls it all together so well and in such a smooth way that makes the suspense build and when the ending hit, I just wanted to read the next book in the series immediately! I am in awe of Siobhan’s writing and I love her style. She has taken a good story and made it great and brings the characters to life realistically. I am looking forward to reading more about the Kennedy boys! 5 stars for this engrossing romantic story!

The Summer Marked by Rebekah L. Purdy

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the opportunity to read and review The Summer Marked by Rebekah L. Purdy, the second book of The Winter People series! The story opens with a taste of Shakespeare’s writing. Salome is now living with Gareth in the Faerie realm and the opening of the book shows us more about her grandmother and her secrets. Kadie receives a message from Salome asking her to meet at a club. Kadie goes, but Salome is not there and she ends up being captured by the Winter Queen’s helpers. They demand to know where Salome is but Kadie doesn’t know, so they keep torturing her. I love the descriptions of the beautiful tattoos Salome receives as she becomes a part of each season and she gains power to help the Fae. The character pool grows in this second book of The Winter People series, making the story more complex and interesting. As people and their relationships evolve, the danger grows. I’m very happy there is a third book to this series because I am not ready to let these characters go. 5 stars for dialogue that matches and portrays the characters perfectly in this fantasy story!