WAITING ON WEDNESDAY #77: All the Rage by Courtney Summers

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

The sheriff’s son, Kellan Turner, is not the golden boy everyone thinks he is, and Romy Grey knows that for a fact. Because no one wants to believe a girl from the wrong side of town, the truth about him has cost her everything—friends, family, and her community. Branded a liar and bullied relentlessly by a group of kids she used to hang out with, Romy’s only refuge is the diner where she works outside of town. No one knows her name or her past there; she can finally be anonymous.But when a girl with ties to both Romy and Kellan goes missing after a party, and news of him assaulting another girl in a town close by gets out, Romy must decide whether she wants to fight or carry the burden of knowing more girls could get hurt if she doesn’t speak up. Nobody believed her the first time—and they certainly won’t now — but the cost of her silence might be more than she can bear.　

With a shocking conclusion and writing that will absolutely knock you out,All the Rage examines the shame and silence inflicted upon young women after an act of sexual violence, forcing us to ask ourselves: In a culture that refuses to protect its young girls, how can they survive?

Expected publication: April 14th 2015 

This book sounds real and gritty and raw. Oh, how I love realistic YA!!
What book are you patiently waiting for the release of?

BOOK BLAST & GIVEAWAY: Creed by Trisha Leaver & Lindsay Currie

CREED
By: Trisha Leaver & Lindsay Currie
Release date: November 8, 2014 
Publisher: Flux 
Genre: Young Adult psychological horror 
ISBN: 0738740802
Purchase: Amazon l B&N l Indiebound

Three went in. Three came out. None even a shadow of who they once were.

When their car breaks down, Dee, her boyfriend Luke, and his brother Mike walk through a winter storm to take refuge in a nearby town called Purity Springs. When they arrive, the emergency sirens are blaring and the small farming town seems abandoned. With no other shelter, they spend the night in an empty house.

But they soon discover that not everything in Purity Springs is as it seems. When the town's inhabitants suddenly appear the next morning, Dee, Luke, and Mike find themselves at the mercy of the charismatic leader, Elijah Hawkins, who plans to make Dee his new wife. Elijah's son, Joseph, offers to help them escape . . . but the price of his help may be more than Dee and her friends can bear. 

Praise For CREED:

“Debut authors Leaver and Currie make an auspicious foray into YA horror...creating a believably desperate and terrifying situation for their characters, and Dee's history of physical and sexual abuse adds another layer of terror to this suspenseful and sporadically gory thriller.” ~Publishers Weekly

Welcome to a town that makes "Children of the Corn" look like child's play. There's no shortage of scary shenanigans happening in "Creed" ... We'd rather take a year-long gig teaching botany to the "Children of the Corn" than take a gas-and-bathroom break on a sunny day in Purity Springs.  ~Kat Rosenfield author of Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone/ MTV News

"This is: a straight-ahead, cover-your-ears tale of terror that grows more nihilistic and grueling by the page.... Leaver and Currie do the best thing horror authors can do, presenting protagonists who make smart choices, over and over, but to no avail. Now that's scary" ~ Daniel Kraus/ Booklist

About Trisha Leaver: Trisha Leaver graduated from the University of Vermont with a degree in Social Work. She lives on Cape Cod with her husband, three kids and one rather irreverent black lab. She is a member of the SCBWI, the Horror Writers Association, and the YA Scream Queens

TWITTER l FACEBOOK l WEBSITE l Instagram: @trishaleaver

About Lindsay Currie: Lindsay Currie graduated from Knox College in Galesburg, IL with an English Literature degree. She is a member of the SCBWI, the Horror Writers Association and a contributor to the YA Scream Queens. 

TWITTER l WEBSITE l FACEBOOK
Instagram: @lindsayncurrie 

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PRE RELEASE BLITZ: Winter Wolf (A New Dawn Novel, #1) by Rachel M. Raithby

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Katalina Winter has been living for eighteen years, with a secret hidden inside of her, a secret not even she knew.

With this secret comes consequences, expectations, one's she's not willing to fulfill; she'll give her heart to whom she wishes, even if he is, a Dark Shadow wolf...

Join Katalina as she navigates her way through this world at war, where the alpha is law, and only the strong survive. You will see the power of true love, and the length's people will go to destroy it.

**Please note this is a YA Stand alone novel, no cliffhangers**

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Follow the link to the Chapters here

I've being reading books for as long as I can remember but I never thought about writing until I read Nalini Singh - Slave to sensation which is the first book in her psy-changling series.

At first I just wrote fan fiction until one morning I woke up with a story of my own. Lincoln and Lexia were born!  I spent 6 solid months writing and re-writing and now their story is out in the world and I am currently working on the final book Holocaust due 2015.

After the birth of my 3rd child I wrote Winter Wolf a YA Paranormal Novel which is due for Release in November.

I have lived in England, New Zealand and currently live in QLD Australia but to me England will always be home.

I've been a dish washer, Admin assistant, horse groom and now spend my days looking after my 3 children and writing as often as I can.

Goodreads Author Page: http://goo.gl/csLV9s

Amazon Author Page:    http://goo.gl/C36Xl6

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/RachelMRaithby

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rachelm.raithbyauthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Rach1986UK

Instagram: http://instagram.com/p/uM1tIDlEX4/

Website: http://rachelmraithby.com/

Blog: http://rmraithby.blogspot.com.au

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COVER REVEAL & GIVEAWAY: Salt & Stone (Fire & Flood #2) by Victoria Scott

What would you do to save someone you love?

In Fire & Flood, Tella Holloway faced a dangerous trek through the jungle and across the desert, all to remain a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed for a chance at obtaining the Cure for her brother. She can't quit--she has to win the race, save Cody, and then fight to make sure the race stops before it can claim any more lives. In the next legs of the race, across the ocean and over mountains, Tella will face frostbite, sharks, avalanche, and twisted new rules in the race.

But what if the danger is deeper than that? How do you know who to trust when everyone's keeping secrets? What do you do when the person you'd relied on most suddenly isn't there for support? How do you weigh one life against another?

The race is coming to an end, and Tella is running out of time, resources, and strength. At the start of the race there were one hundred twenty-two Contenders. As Tella and her remaining friends start the final part of the race, just forty-one are left--and only one can win.

Time is slipping away.... 

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.

The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

Victoria Scott's breathtaking novel grabs readers by the throat and doesn't let go. 

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ARC REVIEW: Raine (Elemental Series #1) by M.M. Roethig

Starting her senior year of high school, Raine Patterson is content with being invisible. That is, until the mysteriously handsome Kaden transfers in and turns her world upside down. Drawn to him in ways she can’t understand, Raine finds herself falling for him, regardless of his harsh stares and mixed signals. When she discovers a hidden ability to control the elements, she finds herself the target of a madman, and Kaden is the only one who can help her. Can she trust him? 

Kaden Williams has hated Elementals from the time he lost his father to them as a young boy. Chosen to protect Elementals, Kaden turned his back on his duty, swearing to rid the world of them instead. Meeting Raine was no accident, but his feelings for her throw him into turmoil and threaten to change the way he feels about Elementals. When Raine becomes the target of an unknown aggressor, Kaden is forced to decide which path he will follow. 

As the struggle for knowledge unfolds and the beginning of a pending war looms closer, Raine and Kaden must lean on each other to discover the truth and survive.

Purchase: Amazon l B&N

My Thoughts:

"It won't be long now. She's coming, the most gifted Elemental being this world has ever seen."

Raine Patterson Has lived her life oblivious to the fact that she's an Elemental. And an incredibly powerful one at that. She was content with blending in at school, and being a normal teenage girl. But when a new boy, Kaden Williams arrives at school, Raine's normal teenage life gets thrown right out the window. Drawn to Kaden right from the start, she is surprised when his friendliness suddenly turns into something that is the complete opposite. And if that isn't enough to think about, she suddenly has the attention of almost every boy in school. But all of that is only the beginning of the changes about to take place in her world.

Raine was such a strong character. Her life gets thrown into a tail spin with revelations, secrets and loss. At each stage she accepted what was placed in front of her and stood tall to do what needed to be done. Even when she could have given up and fallen apart she accepted challenges head on with a real maturity. Yes, she had moments of weakness, and that was what made her such a likeable character. She questions things, and thinks, and tries to do the right thing.

He was tired of feeling the hurt and regret that followed him everywhere he went, but that was who he was, who he'd become, and there was no changing it.

Raine is told from the point of view of both Raine and Kaden. I loved being able to get inside Kaden's head the most. It was perfect to be able to witness his struggle with things first hand. He's been raised to believe that Elementals are the cause of his fathers death and the world should be rid of them. Imagine his anguish when he learns that this may not be the case. This all had such a big impact on his feelings for Raine, and even when he was struggling the most, you could just sense the goodness in his heart.

She couldn't explain why she felt so drawn to him, and why she had an almost irresistible desire to trust him.

M.M. Roethig handled the romantic aspect really well. After the initial attraction, it moved along at a really steady pace. And as you learn Kaden's back story it made the relationship between him and Raine so much more believable. 

The action and conflict throughout the story was a real constant. Especially for the second half of the book where things built to the perfect, powerful and intense, edge of your seat battle. Throw in a few twists and turns and this book had me hooked from the get go. I will definitely be grabbing the next book in the series and continuing the next exciting stage of Raine and Kaden's journey.

3.75/5 Stars.

A big thank you to the author for providing me with this review copy.

REVIEW: After (After #1) by Anna Todd

Tessa is a good girl with a sweet, reliable boyfriend back home. She's got direction, ambition, and a mother who's intent on keeping her that way. But she’s barely moved into her freshman dorm when she runs into Hardin. With his tousled brown hair, cocky British accent, tattoos, and lip ring, Hardin is cute and different from what she’s used to. 

But he's also rude - to the point of cruelty, even. For all his attitude, Tessashould hate Hardin and she does — until she finds herself alone with him in his room. Something about his dark mood grabs her, and when they kiss it ignites within her a passion she’s never known before. 

He’ll call her beautiful, then insist he isn’t the one for her and disappear again and again. Despite the reckless way he treats her, Tessa is compelled to dig deeper and find the real Hardin beneath all his lies. He pushes her away again and again, yet every time she pushes back, he only pulls her in deeper. 

Tessa already has the perfect boyfriend. So why is she trying so hard to overcome her own hurt pride and Hardin’s prejudice about nice girls like her? 

Unless… could this be love?

My Thoughts:

All that I'm certain of is that my life and my heart will never be the same, not after Hardin crashed into them. 

The cover of After proclaims that its had one billion reads online. Wow, I thought!! That's a whole lot of interest. I've personally gone a little bit cold on New Adult lately. The stories all tend to be the same and there are very few authors who I find can consistently produce something new. But when this came up for review I couldn't resist. Now, I've never really listened to One Direction before, so the fact that this was originally written as a 1D fanfiction wasn't what enticed me. I just purely liked the sound of it. And something that had so many reads had to have something going for it, right?

I have to admit to being hooked pretty quickly. Despite a few issues that I had with the grammar, I was loving the story. I was breezing through it. Smiling and swooning and happy as happy can be. I was slowly falling for Hardin, and I really liked Tessa. The whole dynamic drew me in and I couldn't put this book down. But then slowly things started to worry me. I began to have some real issues with the way that the characters, especially Hardin, treated each other.

Now I'm all for tattooed, pierced bad boys. I love them. I adore them. I could eat them for breakfast. And Hardin was tattooed and he was bad. But there's a difference between bad and cruel. And Hardin went from bad to sometimes being downright horrid. We eventually find out that he has had a really crappy childhood, and I found that my heart just about broke for him. What he went through as a child would affect anyone greatly. But it also doesn't excuse his behaviour and treatment of Tessa. He went from hot to cold, up to down, fighting and loving, happy and sad, and all in the blink of an eye and for the most insignificant of reasons. When it comes to his friends, he treats her like his dirty little secret. He doesn't want to commit, but then gets all he man and jealous when she so much as blinks in front of another male. But still I loved him. He had my head in a spin but there was just something about him. But then there is one big fat betrayal that we learn about at the end of the book. It was a doozy!! I really have no idea how the author is going to get me back onside after that one. My love for him was so big, but now I'm not sure I even like him very much.

Every second I spend with Hardin increases my feelings for him, and I know it's dangerous for me to allow these small, seemingly meaningless moments to occur, but I don't have control of myself when Hardin is involved. I become merely a passerby in this storm.

And then there is Tessa. Sweet and inexperienced, she is the complete opposite to Hardin. She's lived a fairly sheltered life, and she's also experienced her own share of childhood heartbreak. She frustrated me on so many occasions. I think that sometimes she forgave Hardin so quickly for the way that he treated her. To a point I could understand it, because she's lived a big chunk of her life trying to please her Mum and avoid confrontation. Then there were the times when Hardin asked her, at times even begged her to listen to him about different situations and she would completely disregard him and end up getting herself in some avoidable predicaments. 

"I just want to be the only person you ever love; that way you are mine."

There was just so much drama between these two and at times it felt like that was all that their time together consisted of. But when they were good, they were so good. Hardin could be so caring and loving. He was sweet and protective. Their chemistry was undeniable.

Even though I mentioned all of these issues that I had, I will definitely pick up the next book. I was addicted from start to finish. I really want to see where the author is going with things. I want to see where she takes Tessa and Hardin. I want Hardin to man up and learn that woman should be treated with respect, and I want Tessa to mature a little bit. Love is about respect and care and concern, and I'm not fully convinced that Tessa and Hardin are there yet.

For me, the first two thirds of After would be a solid four and a half, possibly five star read. But then the last third would be a three star read. And that is solely because of Hardin. But, there is no denying that I read to feel, and After made me feel so many things, and that can only be a good thing.

My feelings for Hardin are so confusing. I hate him one minute and want to kiss him the next... He makes me laugh and cry, yell and scream, but most of all he makes me feel alive.

Thank you so much to Simon and Schuster Australia for the review copy. 

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Diamonds in the Rough (The Secret Diamond Sisters #2) by Michelle Madow

Diamonds in the Rough (The Secret Diamond Sisters #2)

by Michelle Madow 

Release Date: 28/10/14

Harlequin Teen

448

Summary from Goodreads:

All-access doesn't mean no problems.

The three Diamond sisters survived the summer in style after coming to live with their long-lost billionaire father. But making a place for themselves at their exclusive new Las Vegas private school is throwing them any number of gold-plated curves. Savannah's YouTube stardom turns into a Sweet Sixteen reality show extravaganza—with complimentary enemies on the side. Dangerous flirtations don't keep Peyton from a gamble that will risk far more than she planned to bet. And when Courtney and the sisters' archenemy, Madison, uncover two explosive secrets, it will rock even this town of glittering illusion—and turn their lives upside down all over again.

Sisterhood, first crushes, and scandalous secrets explode in book two of Michelle Madow's riveting series, The Secret Diamond Sisters.

Buy Links:

Amazon l Barnes & Noble l Books A Million l Book Depository l iBookstore

At fifteen years old, Savannah is the youngest Diamond sister. Her older sisters have sheltered her for her entire life. Despite her rough upbringing, she’s optimistic and wants to think the best of people, although this can sometimes lead to her coming off as naïve. She wants to fit in at school, but has always felt like an outsider. She tends to feel overshadowed by the people around her. She trusts easily, and it sometimes leads to her getting hurt, but she’s always there for her sisters and friends when they need her!

Savannah loves singing, and has a fantastic voice, so it’s her ultimate dream to be a famous pop star. She’s been stage fright since a talent show disaster in middle school, but wants to record cover songs and post them on YouTube to try to get a following, like the YouTube stars she idolizes. She also plays guitar, but is self-taught, so she’s still learning how to improve. She mainly plays to accompany herself while singing. She’s athletic, and played on the JV volleyball team in her school in her hometown. She hopes to make Varsity as a sophomore. 

She loves shopping and wearing anything that sparkles—dresses, nail polish, shoes, eye shadow, you name it! She loves reading fashion magazines and trying to duplicate the high-end styles worn by the models. Her favorite meal of the day is breakfast, and her favorite food is pancakes. Savannah has never had a serious boyfriend, and wants more than anything to believe that true love is possible! 

Sequel to:

(cover linked to Goodreads)

Buy Links:

Amazon l Barnes & Noble l Books A Million l Book Depository l iBookstore

About the Author:

Michelle Madow was inspired to write The Secret Diamond Sisters series while walking through her favorite hotel in Las Vegas. The next book in the series, Diamonds in the Rough, launches in October. Prior to The Secret Diamond Sisters, she successfully self-published The Transcend Time Saga. A tireless promoter of her work, Michelle is active on social media networks and has toured across America to promote her books and encourage high school students to embrace reading and writing. A graduate of Rollins College, Michelle lives in Florida ... but she loves going to Vegas.

To chat with Michelle and other fans about her books, join Michelle Madow's Street Team on Facebook!

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