Wicked Reads Blog Tour: Why Books are Better than Candy! Plus Highlight On Monstrous Devices by Damien Love @penguinkids #wickedreads

A few weeks ago I was approached by Penguin Young Readers to participate in a super fun blog tour called Wicked Reads. 

They paired candy up with several books.  I picked a candy and got that book. BUT the book was a surprise!  We then post about the book along with other fun material. 

I jumped at the chance to participate because it sounded like so much fun.  

I picked:

And got the book:

On a winter's day in a British town, twelve-year old Alex receives a package in the mail: an old tin robot from his grandfather. "This one is special," says the enclosed note, and when strange events start occurring around him, Alex suspects this small toy is more than special; it might be deadly.

Right as things get out of hand, Alex's grandfather arrives, pulling him away from an attack--and his otherwise humdrum world of friends, bullies, and homework--and into the macabre magic of an ancient family feud. Together, the duo flees across snowy Europe, unraveling the riddle of the little robot while trying to outwit relentless assassins of the human and mechanical kind.

Sounds like a super fun book!

But I have even more fun!  

As great as candy is (and trust me I love it!).

Here is why Books are Better than Candy

1. First of all, books are calorie free!  Seriously all that fun and no calories!  How could you not be excited about that?!?
2. Books are sugar-free.  Well ok, they may be sweet at times, but you won't get a real cavity from them! 
3. You can borrow and return them!  Not so much with candy.  I don't think anyone wants me to borrow their candy and then return it!
4. Books don't melt in your hands or pockets.  Can you imagine if they did! You'd never ever be able to read outside!
5. Books can be read over and over.  Candy can't be eaten over and over. Yuck!
6. Books last longer.  It would take me several hours to read Monstrous Devices and only about 5 minutes to eat a box of Whoppers!
7. Books show you care more than candy. If my husband gave me a book instead of a bag of candy I would know he was thinking about me more!
8. You want to share books!  I read a great book - I want to share it! I eat a great candy bar - no way I'm sharing that thing!
9. No need to brush your teeth after reading a book! Read away!
10. Lastly - books can take you on great adventures, allow you to meet famous people, let you solve mysteries, and learn new cultures.  Not so sure the last time my Milky Way let all that happen! 

So you tell me - for you why are books better than candy?????

Rockstar Blog Tour: Sanity & Tallulah by Molly Brooks +GIVEAWAY

http://www.rockstarbooktours.com/

Graphic novels are huge at our middle school.  I mean I got one kid to read Macbeth because it was a graphic novel! So when given the chance to check out a new graphic novel I jumped on it!

Today I'd like to introduce you to:

Title: SANITY & TALLULAH

Author: Molly Brooks

Pub. Date: October 16, 2018

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Formats: Hardcover, paperback, eBook

Pages: 240

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, iBooks, TBD

Sanity Jones and Tallulah Vega are best friends on Wilnick, the dilapidated space station they call home at the end of the galaxy. So naturally, when gifted scientist Sanity uses her lab skills and energy allowance to create a definitely-illegal-but-impossibly-cute three-headed kitten, she has to show Tallulah. But Princess, Sparkle, Destroyer of Worlds is a bit of a handful, and it isn't long before the kitten escapes to wreak havoc on the space station. The girls will have to turn Wilnick upside down to find her, but not before causing the whole place to evacuate! Can they save their home before it's too late?

Readers will be over the moon for this rollicking space adventure by debut author Molly Brooks.

Does this sound just fun and cute and great?! I know it's one I'll be able to sell easily to my middle school students.  Something I liked about it when just flipping through was the colors.  It's all black, white, grey and a muted pink.  Love it!  Just not colors I typically see in graphic novels! 

Can't wait to read this one! Watch for my review very soon.  

About Molly: 

I’m a freelance illustrator/comics-maker in Brooklyn by way of Nashville.

Website | Twitter |  Goodreads | Tumblr

Check out the rest of the tour:

Week One:
10/8/2018- A Backwards Story- Review
10/9/2018- Christen Krumm, Writer- Review
10/10/2018- The Layaway Dragon- Review
10/11/2018- Here's to Happy Endings- Review
10/12/2018- The OWL- Review

Week Two:
10/15/2018- Rhythmicbooktrovert- Review
10/16/2018- Beagles & Books- Review
10/17/2018- Utopia State of Mind- Excerpt
10/18/2018- YA Books Central- Interview
10/19/2018- Eli to the nth- Revi

GIVEAWAY!  

Giveaway Details:

3 winners will win a finished copy of SANITY & TALLULAH, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: Last Kids on Earth and the Cosmic Beyond by Max Brailler

Very excited to be a part of the blog tour for The Last Kids on Earth! 

Title: The Last Kids on Earth and the Cosmic Beyond
Author: Max Brallier
Copy Obtained: From publisher

About the Book
It's the first winter after the Monster Apocalypse. For Jack and his buddies, that means sled catapults, epic snowball battles, and one monstrous Christmas celebration. But their winter wonderland turns dark when a villainess begins hunting them. And this villainess is different--she's a human. 

When the villainess steals Jack's prized monster-slaying tool, the Louisville Slicer, he vows to get it back. But it won't be easy. Jack and his friends soon discover that the Louisville Slicer is the key to a dark plan that threatens the entire world--and beyond . . .


About the Author

Max Brallier (maxbrallier.com) is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty books and games, including the previous books in The Last Kids on Earth series. He is the creator and writer of Galactic Hot Dogs, an ongoing middle-grade web serial and book series with Aladdin. He writes for licensed properties including Adventure Time, Regular Show, and Uncle Grandpa. Under the pen name Jack Chabert, he is the creator and author of the Eerie Elementary series for Scholastic Books. In the olden days, he worked in the marketing department at St. Martin's Press. Max lives just outside of New York City with his wife and daughter.


ILLUSTRATOR BIO:

Douglas Holgate has been a freelance comic book artist and illustrator based in Melbourne, Australia, for more than ten years. He's illustrated books for publishers including HarperCollins, Penguin Random House, Hachette, and Simon & Schuster, and comics for Image, Dynamite, Abrams, and Penguin Random House.

I'm constantly looking for great series to get my students hooked on.  For most middle school students, they need a book with action.  Without action, for a lot of them, they cannot stay with a book.  Here's a book that has it! This is a book series that I know will capture them from the start and pull them all the way through to the end.  I couldn't ask for anything more! This book is a great addition to the series. Plus - I Love Jack!  Great character, but yet a typical kid.  I think I've seen this type of kid several times throughout my teaching career! 

I also love that it has the dystopia angle but without it being too much for this age group.  It's just the right amount.  Plus it has zombies!  I love zombie but books with them for this age group are hard to find.  And when I do find them I know they aren't for every reader because they could be too graphic.  Again this book fills that slot!  

Lastly - this has some nice little humor and references to things kids will recognize.  I love when books do that, but not overdo it.  This book has that!  

Definitely a book/series to add to the media center! 

Check out some other stops on the tour!

September 17 – Gravity Bread  – Tween Review

September 18 – Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers – Review

September 19 – The O.W.L. – Review

September 20 – A to Z Book Reviews – Review

September 21 – Pink Polka Dot Books – Listicle  

Blog Tour Book Reivew: The Third Mushroom by Jennifer L. Holm +GIVEAWAY

Today I am part of the blog tour for The Third Mushroom 

hosted by Rockstar Book Tours!

About the Book:

Title: The Third Mushroom

Author: Jennifer L. Holm

Pub. Date: September 4, 2018

Publisher: Random House

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 240

"Believe in the unexpected" with this hilarious, heartwarming, and much-anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestseller The Fourteenth Goldfish!


Ellie's grandpa Melvin is a world-renowned scientist . . . in the body of a fourteen-year-old boy. His feet stink, and he eats everything in the refrigerator--and Ellie is so happy to have him around. Grandpa may not exactly fit in at middle school, but he certainly keeps things interesting. When he and Ellie team up for the county science fair, no one realizes just how groundbreaking their experiment will be. The formula for eternal youth may be within their reach! And when Ellie's cat, Jonas Salk, gets sick, the stakes become even higher. But is the key to eternal life really the key to happiness? Sometimes even the most careful experiments yield unexpected--and wonderful--results.

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Audible, B&N, iBooks, TBD 

About the Author

Jennifer L. Holm is a NEW YORK TIMES bestselling children's author and the recipient of three Newbery Honors for her novels OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA, PENNY FROM HEAVEN, and TURTLE IN PARADISE. Jennifer collaborates with her brother, Matthew Holm, on two graphic novel series -- the Eisner Award-winning Babymouse series and the bestselling Squish series. Her new novel is THE FOURTEENTH GOLDFISH. She lives in California with her husband and two children.

Website | Twitter | Facebook |  Goodreads 

There are not many middle-grade books that make science fun. This is one!  I adored this book.  I will be honest - I haven't read the first book (The Fourteenth Goldfish), so I was a bit lost now and again, but not really much at all.  I do know that I will need to go back and read it now! Can I just say that Melvin is a hoot?! I love the mix of a crotchety old man in the body of a kid.  The juxtaposition was fantastic!  I think I've actually had a few students like him.  They are an old person in a young person's body! 

I think what I really liked about this book that it's more than just a silly story revolving around these fun characters.  It gets the reader to question a few things and learn along with Ellie.  It's hard to have a balance of both in a book for middle schoolers.  Sometimes it can come off too heavy-handed.  This book avoided that.  

I do have to mention the cat, Jonas Salk.  I love cats, and this cat was the best!  I wanted him to walk off the page and snuggle with me.  

And lastly, I want to talk about the parents in the book.  Well, Ellie's mom and stepdad at least.  I thought they were portrayed really well.  You see so much of absent parents or parents that are shown as just clueless.  That wasn't the case here.  I liked that Ellie got along with her stepdad.  Too often the stereotype would've had that the opposite.  Just glad to see parents written well! 

Want a chance to read the book for yourself?  Check out the giveaway below.  If you want to see more of the tour see the schedule below as well! 

Blog Tour

9/10/2018- For the Love of KidLit- Interview

9/11/2018- YA Books Central- Interview

9/12/2018- The OWL- Review

9/13/2018- Book-Keeping- Review

9/14/2018- Two Points of Interest- Review

3 winners will receive a finished copy of THE THIRD MUSHROOM, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: The Law of Finders Keepers by Shelia Turnage

Title: Laws of Finders Keepers
Author: Sheila Turnage
Copy Obtained: From publisher

Pirate fever sweeps through the town after an opportunistic treasure hunter shows up looking to lay claim to Blackbeard's lost gold buried somewhere in Tupelo Landing. When the (probably) world-famous Desperado Detectives--Mo and Dale and Harm--are hired by Mayor Little's mother to find the pirate loot for her, and the high-stakes race for riches is on!

But that's not the only treasure hunt in town. Mo LoBeau unearths shocking new clues that may lead to her long-lost Upstream Mother--in the riskiest, scariest, and possibly richest case of her life.

Will Mo find her Upstream Mother? Can the Desperados sidestep Blackbeard's curse and outsmart a professional treasure hunter? Will Dale faint under the pressure of Valentine's Day? Could the stakes be any higher? Yes. With twin treasures hanging in the balance, Mo, Dale, and Harm realize one of them may have to leave Tupelo Landing. For good.

One sentence review: Great mystery especially for the middle school set.  

Best for readers who: Simple - good for readers who love mysteries and love trying to put the clues together themselves to see if they can solve it.  

Best Stick-with-You Image: Any scene with Dale.  He makes me laugh.  

Library Thoughts: I'm always having kids ask for mystery novels, so yes for sure I'd add this one! I also like that it is part of a series, so they'll have more to read. 

I love mysteries.  I always have.  When I was younger I read so many of them.  And I especially loved mysteries that kept me guessing right until the very end.  This was one of them.  I had read the first book in this series of mysteries, so it was fun to revisit the characters and see what new ones were added.  The Desperado Detective agency was a great fun! And can I say I just loved how the book starts almost with the voice of your old-fashioned black and white detective movies??  I could almost hear it as a voice over while the scene played out with the stereotypical old movie PI scene.  Such a great way to start out the story! And about the beginning - I had to giggle since they are all excited about the possibility of snow.  I live in Minnesota so it just made me laugh to see their reactions to the idea! 

The plot was good.  Twists and turns as should be expected with a good mystery.  The characters are quirky but not too the point of being over-done.  They each have a great personality that made me like them (or not like them depending!).  A cast of characters that added to - not distracted from - a plot that kept moving.

I'm glad I had the chance to read and share this one! 

Check out more stops on the tour!

WEEK ONE

September 3 – Just Commonly – Image Puzzle

September 4 – Comfort Books – Spotlight

September 5 – Trissinalovesbooks – Review + Creative Instagram Picture

September 6 – Ireadtilldawn – Review

September 7 – Jactionary – Listicle   

WEEK TWO

September 10 – Word Spelunking – Review

September 11 – The O.W.L. – Review

September 12 – Teachers Who Read – Q&A + Classroom Activity

September 13 – Prose and Khan – Review

September 14 – YA Books Central – Giveaway

About the Author

Sheila Turnage is from eastern North Carolina, just like Miss Moses LoBeau, the protagonist from the Mo & Dale mystery series that began with Three Times Lucky. Three Times Lucky is a Newbery Honor Book, a New York Times bestseller, an E. B. White Read-Aloud Honor Book, and an Edgar Award finalist. It has been nominated for nineteen state awards, including the Texas Bluebonnet Master List, and has been licensed in five countries. Her follow-up book, The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing, also a New York Timesbestseller, received five starred reviews and was a SIBA Winter 2014 Okra Pick and a Junior Library Guild selection. Sheila is also the author of two more books in the Mo & Dale Mystery series, The Odds of Getting Even and The Law of Finders Keepers, and the nonfiction adult books Haunted Inns of the Southeast and Compass American Guides: North Carolina, as well as one picture book, Trout the Magnificent, illustrated by Janet Stevens.

Blog Tour: I Do Not Trust You by Laura J. Burns & Melinda Metz

Today I'm posting as part of the blog tour for a great new book out! 

Title: I Do Not Trust You
Authors: Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz
Copy Obtained: From publisher

Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz, authors of Sanctuary Bay and the Edgar-nominated mystery series Wright and Wong, are back with a story that features their signature plot twists and uneasy ever-changing alliances. 

I Do Not Trust You is a thrilling journey at every turn that asks – what would you do to save the ones you love? Memphis "M" Engel is stubborn to a fault, graced with an almost absurd knowledge of long-lost languages and cultures, and a heck of an opponent in a fight. In short: she's awesome. Ashwin “Ash” Sood is a little too posh for M's tastes, a little too good looking, and has way too many secrets. He desperately wants the ancient map M inherited from her archeologist father, believing it will lead him to a relic with the power to destroy the world. M obviously can't trust him.

Equally desperate to find the relic for reasons of her own, M forms an uneasy partnership with Ash. From the catacombs of Paris, to a sacred forest in Norway, to the ruins of a submerged temple in Egypt, together they crisscross the globe in their search. But through it all, M can never be sure: Is she traveling with a friend or enemy? In their latest collaboration, Burns and Metz prove once again the magic that happens when two talented mystery authors work together. Going on M’s journey will have readers’ hearts race with every page. With its dangerous secrets and dark mythology, I Do Not Trust You is irresistible to any fan of YA thrillers.

About the Authors

Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz have written many books for teens and middle-grade readers, including Sanctuary Bay, Crave, and Sacrifice, as well as the Edgar-nominated mystery series Wright and Wong. They have also written for the TV shows ROSWELL, 1-800-MISSING, and THE DEAD ZONE. Laura lives in New York and Melinda lives in North Carolina, but really they mostly live on email, where they do most of their work together.

One sentence review: Combines Egyptian mythology and modern-day archeology into an action-packed ride that gave me a whole new view of hieroglyphs, history and finding treasure.  

Best for readers who: Like mystery, action, and tension.  And who are interested in archeology and Egypt.  

Best Stick-with-You Image: Can't say or I'll give something away! 

I just finished listening to Throne of Fire, and that book uses Egyptian mythology as its base.  So when I first started reading this book I felt like I had a leg-up because I knew who Set and Horus were! Actually having that background really helped pull me into the book even more.  I kept thinking  - I know this! But it was fun to see it in a different light.  The idea of Set and Horus had people who still believed in them and wanted to bring them back - was fun!  Ok beyond that I loved all the talk about the "map" and hieroglyphs and ancient languages.  I'm a former English teacher, so the structure of language - any language is interesting to me! 

Ok enough of that - the characters.  I really enjoyed Memphis and Ash.  Memphis was a beast.  That really is the best way to describe her.  She had no fear to do what she knew needed to be done.  And then, of course, she did it!  And I loved how that kept throwing Ash for a loop! Kinda made me giggle.  It was also nice to just have a girl who didn't need saving.  She was very capable of saving herself! 

The plot was great.  Lots of twists and turns which I like.  It slowed down a little at points, but not for so long that I got bored.  The tension builds great throughout the story, but not so much that I was just like - end it!  I get that way sometimes when it seems that too many crises happen.  I was ok with how this one built and finished.

Well done and enjoyed! 

Blog Tour Review: Sadie by Courtney Summers

I'm thrilled to be part of the blog tour for the book Sadie.  I'd seen some good buzz about the book, so when offered the chance to participate I jumped at it!

About the Book

Title: Sadie
Author: Courtney Summers
Copy Obtained: From publisher in exchange for honest review

Courtney Summers is already known for her well written and dark young adult novels, earning rave starred trade reviews on every book. With a fierce and independent female lead, SADIE (September 4, 2018; Wednesday Books) continues in this vein told in part as a podcast, similar to Serial, about a missing girl determined to avenge her sister’s death. A propulsive and harrowing read that will keep you riveted until the last page, Courtney Summers has written the breakout book of her career. 

Sadie hasn't had an easy life. Growing up on her own, she's been raising her sister Mattie in an 
isolated small town, trying her best to provide a normal life and keep their heads above water. But when Mattie is found dead, Sadie's entire world crumbles. After a somewhat botched police investigation, Sadie is determined to bring her sister's killer to justice and hits the road following a few meager clues to find him.

When West McCray—a radio personality working on a segment about small, forgotten towns in America—overhears Sadie's story at a local gas station, he becomes obsessed with finding the missing girl. He starts his own podcast as he tracks Sadie's journey, trying to figure out what happened, hoping to find her before it's too late.

Advanced praise for SADIE:

"SADIE is an electrifying, high-stakes road trip—a gripping thriller with a true—crime podcast edge. Clear your schedule. You're not going anywhere until you've reached the end." —Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of There's Someone Inside Your House and Anna and the French Kiss

"A haunting, gut-wrenching, and relentlessly compelling read. SADIE grabs you and won't let you go until you've borne witness."—Veronica Roth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Carve the Mark and The Divergent series

“We love a good podcast mystery, so we are here for this fall 2018 release from Wednesday Books.” – RT Book Reviews

About the Author
COURTNEY SUMMERS lives and writes in Canada. She is the author of What Goes Around, This is Not a Test, Fall for Anything, Some Girls Are, Cracked Up to Be, Please Remain Calm, and All the Rage.

One sentence review: Wow what a ride!

Best for readers who: 15+, like books that slowly unravel the whole story, are ok with mature themes

Best Stick-with-You Image: The old house Sadie enters and finds something.  Really found it a turning point in the story.

Library Thoughts: As much as I liked the book, it isn't a book I'd put in the middle school library.  The content is a bit more mature.  I would put it in a high school library. 

Honestly I really really didn't like Sadie (the character not the book) at first.  I found her so pulled into herself that I felt like I couldn't connect to her or her story.  But over the first fourth of the book, I slowly grew to like her and her toughness.  I liked her because she chose to not sit around and do nothing.  Instead, she did what she felt she needed to do and pulled a lot of strength from deep-down.  By the end, I loved her and felt a ton for her!

Over-all that's how I felt about the book as a whole.  At first, I wasn't sure about it.  I struggled reading the podcast parts (more on those later!).  I just wanted Sadie's part of the story.  But as the story went along I realized that I had to hear/read the podcast part because they created a fuller story.  The podcast rounded Sadie out.  It made her more 3-dimensional.  It also made me feel for her more because I knew that what she thought wasn't always the truth, and it was sad that she didn't know it! 

I loved how this story unraveled.  It came in bits and pieces to the characters outside of Sadie.  She of course, knew the full truth of what she was doing and why.  But watching the others slowly put the puzzle together was amazing.  Very well done.  So many little bits you think are gone show up later and bring the whole plot more depth.  They all clicked nicely into place.

The ending - It was a wow one for me.  I'm still struggling with it.  I'll leave it at that! I will warn you that the book covers some topics I didn't realize would be there - so heavier topics.  The ending was part of that.  I don't want to give anything away, so I'll leave it at that.  

About the podcast portions of the book - I didn't know they were actually going to make some of the podcasts from the book.  I found them a while into the book.  So glad I found them because they helped pull me into the book even more!  There are parts of the podcasts that are stilted because it's acted not real, but for me listening to them helped me read them better in the book!  Here's the link if you want to check them out. The Girls Podcast I strongly suggest listening to them.

In all, I really enjoyed the book! It does pull you in, and you need to know what happens.  I felt for Sadie - for all the characters really.  I wanted peace for her.  

Blog Tour: A Room Away From Wolves Review +GIVEAWAY

Excited to be a part of the blog tour for A Room Away From Wolves blog tour hosted by Fantastic Flying Book Club!

TOUR SCHEDULE

ABOUT THE BOOK

A Room Away From the Wolves

by Nova Ren Suma

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Release Date: September 4, 2018

Genre: Young Adult, Magical Realism, Mystery

Synopsis:

Bina has never forgotten the time she and her mother ran away from home. Her mother promised they would hitchhike to the city to escape Bina’s cruel father and start over. But before they could even leave town, Bina had a new stepfather and two new stepsisters, and a humming sense of betrayal pulling apart the bond with her mother—a bond Bina thought was unbreakable.

Eight years later, after too many lies and with trouble on her heels, Bina finds herself on the side of the road again, the city of her dreams calling for her. She has an old suitcase, a fresh black eye, and a room waiting for her at Catherine House, a young women’s residence in Greenwich Village with a tragic history, a vow of confidentiality, and dark, magical secrets. There, Bina is drawn to her enigmatic downstairs neighbor Monet, a girl who is equal parts intriguing and dangerous. As Bina’s lease begins to run out, and nightmare and memory get tangled, she will be forced to face the terrible truth of why she’s come to Catherine House and what it will take for her to leave...

Find the Book

Goodreads

Amazon 

Barnes & Noble

Book Depository

Kobo

IndieBound

iBooks

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nova Ren Suma is the author of the YA novels THE WALLS AROUND US as well as the YA novels IMAGINARY GIRLS and 17 & GONE, which were both named 2014 Outstanding Books for the College Bound by YALSA. Her middle-grade novel, DANI NOIR, was reissued for a YA audience under the title FADE OUT. She has a BA in writing & photography from Antioch College and an MFA in fiction from Columbia University and has been awarded fiction fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, the Djerassi Resident Artists Program, the Millay Colony, and an NEA fellowship for a residency at the Hambidge Center. She worked for years behind the scenes in publishing, at places such as HarperCollins, Penguin, Marvel Comics, and RAW Books, and now she teaches writing workshops. She is from various small towns across the Hudson Valley and lives and writes in New York City.

Find Nova online at novaren.com and on her blog distraction99.com.

Two sentence review: Who do you believe?  What do you believe? Mystery and ghosts all mixed together. 

Best for readers who: Are ok with being kept in the dark some - not having the whole picture. 

Best Stick-with-You Image: The opening scene - grabbed me right away.

Library Thoughts: If I had a high school library I'd consider it, but it's really not for middle-grade students. 

This is a story that captures your attention from the beginning and doesn't let go.  I've loved previous books from Nova Ren Suma, so I was super excited to jump into this one.  I wasn't disappointed.  As usual, I questioned what was happening.  Did a trust what I was being told?  Could I believe it?  It wasn't until the end that I felt like I had all the answers - well at least enough to be satisfied.

I liked the character of Bina - well mostly.  At first, she was really hard to like!  When you first meet her, her mother is sending her away for issues with her step-sisters.  I wanted to believe that it was all their fault - that they were mean to Bina, but there were hints that I shouldn't completely believe that.  BUT as the story went along, she really grew on me!  I found her strong, smart and willing to act.  She drove the story and at times it was a bumpy ride. 

I love ghost stories and mysteries, and this book had some of both.  And in typical Nova Ren Suma style that mystery is created by a writing style that is both detailed and shaded.  I had to get used to it again, but once I did I fell into the world and got swept away with Bina.

GIVEAWAY

Prize: 1 copy of A ROOM AWAY FROM THE WOLVES by Nova Ren Suma

US Only

Starts: 8/20

Ends: 9/5

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour Book Review: Willa of the Wood by Robert Beatty +GIVEAWAY

Today I'm excited to be part of the blog tour for Willa of the Wood! 

I've seen this one a while ago, and knew it was something I needed to check out! 

Thanks to RockStar Tours for hosting the tour.  You can find out more about them HERE.  

Title: WILLA OF THE WOOD

Author: Robert Beatty
Pub. Date: July 10, 2018
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook
Pages: 384
Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Audible, B&N, iBooks, TBD

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Robert Beatty comes a spooky, thrilling new series set in the magical world of Serafina. 


Move without a sound. Steal without a trace. 


Willa, a young nightspirit of the Great Smoky Mountains, is her clan's best thief. She creeps into the homes of day-folk in the cover of darkness and takes what they won't miss. It's dangerous work — the day-folk kill whatever they do not understand. But when Willa's curiosity leaves her hurt and stranded in a day-folk man's home, everything she thought she knew about her people — and their greatest enemy — is forever changed.

About Robert: 

Robert Beatty is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Serafina Series published by Disney-Hyperion, a spooky mystery-thriller about a brave and unusual girl who lives secretly in the basement of the grand Biltmore Estate.

Serafina and the Black Cloak was a #1 New York Times bestseller, has been on the list for more than 45 weeks, and won the prestigious 2016 Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize. The second book in the series, Serafina and the Twisted Staff, became a #1 New York Times bestseller in the first week of its launch and earned a “Starred Review” from Kirkus Reviews, which said, “Even better than its predecessor, a sequel that delivers nonstop thrills from beginning to end.” Enjoyed by both young readers and adults, the books are being taught in over a thousand classrooms nationwide. The third book in the Serafina series comes out in July 2017. Robert Beatty has been awarded an additional four-book deal with Disney-Hyperion.

Robert Beatty lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina with his wife and three daughters, who help create and refine his stories. He loves to explore Biltmore Estate and the darkened forest trails where his novels take place. He writes full-time now, but in his past lives, Robert was one of the early pioneers of cloud computing, the founder/CEO of Plex Systems, the co-founder of Beatty Robotics, and the chairman/CTO of Narrative Magazine. In 2007, he was named an Entrepreneur of the Year.

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So I'll be perfectly honest - I have not read the Seraphina books.  I've had tons of kids read them and really like them, and they are on my TBR pile for sure! So when I had the chance to review this book set in the same world, I knew I had to be a part of the tour, and I'm glad I did.  I can see why students like books written by this author.  This book started out jumping right into the action!  I was holding my breath from almost page one! I continued to hold it for quite a while.  The book continued like that.  It had scenes that were filled with tension and action followed by scenes with emotion and character development.  Loved that!

I loved the plot of the story as well.  I love when characters have to question that they thought was the truth and then struggle through learning what they can and should believe now.  Willa does this.  Watching her wrestle thought this was great.  And I made me really like Willa!  And about Willa - LOVED her.  She was smart and brave and impulsive.  At times I loved everything she did, and at times I wanted to shake her.  It made her real - even though she clearly wasn't! 

The world building was great.  I will say it took me a bit to understand and learn the world of Willa's, but I've always struggled with that when reading fantasy.  It takes me awhile to let go of my understanding of the real world and go into the world of a fantasy book.  Once I understood the world better I was fully engulfed in it.  

Final Thought:  Really enjoyed it and really liked Willa.  Pushed Seraphina to the upper end of my TBR!

Library Thoughts: I will for sure be adding it to my middle school library! 

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Tour Schedule:

Week One:

7/2/2018- jrsbookreviews- Review

7/3/2018- YA Books Central- Interview

7/4/2018- Here's to Happy Endings- Review

7/5/2018- History from a Woman’s Perspective- Review

7/6/2018- The OWL- Review

Week Two:

7/9/2018- A Dream Within A Dream- Excerpt

7/10/2018- A Backwards Story- Interview

7/11/2018- Novel Novice- Guest Post

7/12/2018- Don't Judge, Read- Review

7/13/2018- Two points of interest- Review