"To find out what a story's really about,' the Librarian said,

'you don't ask the writer. You ask the reader."


- SNOW & ROSE by Emily Winfield Martin


Showing posts with label Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Release Day (Excerpt and Giveaway): THIS RAGING LIGHT by Estelle Laure (YA)


I am very excited for today's release today!!! 
THIS RAGING LIGHT by Estelle Laure sounds amazing!!!
I cannot wait to get a copy of it!!!

If you haven't heard about this book yet, be sure to check out all the details in this post... 

This blitz includes a giveaway for a finished copy of the book!
And, a bottle of nail polish that matches the cover! Courtesy of Estelle, HMH and Rockstar Book Tours!!! 
Be sure to enter using the Rafflecopter towards the bottom of this post.

http://www.rockstarbooktours.com

by Estelle Laure
Release date: December 22nd, 2015
Published by HMH Books for Young Readers
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Format: Hardcover (288 pages), eBook, Audiobook



SUMMARY

Can the best thing happen at the worst time?

Her dad went crazy. 

Her mom left town. 

She has bills to pay and a little sister to look after. 

Now is not the time for level-headed seventeen-year-old Lucille to fall in love. 
But love - messy, inconvenient love - is what she's about to experience when she falls for Digby Jones, her best friend's brother. 

With blazing longing that builds into a fever pitch, Estelle Laure's soulful debut will keep readers hooked and hoping until the very last page.


BUY IT NOW





Praise for THIS RAGING LIGHT

"A funny, poetic, big-hearted reminder that life can - and will - 
take us all by surprise.” 

- Jennifer E. Smith, THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT 




EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT

When Wrenny and I roll up the hill to Eden’s house in Mom’s ancient Corolla, Digby and his dad, John, are outside playing basketball, and I want to get in the house as fast as possible,
because otherwise I might be trapped here all day, staring. I get a little twinge of something seeing a dad and his kid playing ball like dads and kids are supposed to. That’s a real
thing, and my hand wants to cover Wren’s face so she can’t see all that she is missing.

            Which reminds me. “Wren.”

            “Yeah?” She’s wiping at her shirt, reading a book on her lap, and she’s a little bit filthy, her hair greasy and knotty in spite of my efforts this morning. At some point the braids came out, and she’s reverted to wild.

            “You know how Mom hasn’t been around lately?”

            She stops. Tightens. “Yeah,” she says.

            “Well, we don’t want anyone to know about that, okay?
            Even Janie and Eden and Digby and John.”

            “But Mom’s on vacation. She’s getting her head together. She’s coming back.”

            “Okay, yes,” I say, “but still. We don’t want to tell anyone, because they might not understand that. They might get the wrong idea.”

            “Like that she left us permanently?” There is so much more going on inside that Wrenny-head than I can ever know.

            “Maybe, or at least for longer than she was supposed to.” I reach for the handle to the door because I can’t look at her. “Someone might think that.”

            “She didn’t, though,” she says. “She’s Mom.”

            “Of course she didn’t.” Lie.

            “So who cares what anyone thinks?”

            “Wren, just don’t, okay?”

            “Okay.”

            “Some things are private.” I open the door, then lean back across and wipe uselessly at her shirt with my thumb. “Like Mom being on vacation. So, okay?”

            “I said okay, okay?” She gets out and waits, stares at me like I’m the most aggravating person on earth. “Hey, Lu?”

            “Yeah?” I say, bracing myself for what’s next.

            “Your mama’s so fat, she left the house in high heels and came back in flip-flops.”

            I would tell her that I hate her new obsession with fat jokes, but I’m not in the mood for any dawdling, so I half laugh and get moving. I want to get inside and quick because there’s also the other thing. And by “other” I mean what makes me sweat just standing here. And by “thing” I mean Digby, who I have known since I was seven but who lately makes a fumbling moronic moron out of me, a full-on halfwit. Ask me my name when I’m in his presence and I’m not likely to be able to tell you. I’d probably just say, “Lllll . . . lllllllu . . .” and you’d have to catch the drool running down my chin.

            I know. It’s not at all attractive.

            But really. Tall, sweaty, and not wearing a shirt, so the muscles are all right there for the watching. He doesn’t exactly glisten, on account of the fact that he’s whiter than white, that he tans by getting freckles so he’s covered in them now after a whole summer outside. But seeing his hair all plastered to his forehead, his body so long and lean, looping around his dad to get the ball into the hoop, I want to fall out of the car and onto my knees in the driveway, say Lord have mercy, hallelujah, write sonnets and paint him, and worship that one little curve where his neck meets his shoulder that is just so, so perfect.

            He is beautiful.

            Which is why when he says hi as I pass him, I barely raise a pinky in response. There are two main problems here, aside from the fact that he is Eden’s twin and that’s all kinds of weird.

            One, he’s had the same girlfriend since the dawn of time. They’re pinned, she wears his jacket, their marriage certificate is practically already signed. Angels bless their freakin’ union. And two, if I ever did get a chance with him, like if he ever kissed me or something, I would die of implosion. I know I sound like a twelve-year-old mooning over some celebrity, and not the extremely self-possessed woman-tobe that I actually am, but something about him makes me lose my mind. Something about the way he moves, about his himness — it shatters me all the way down. So I hope he never does kiss me. That would be nothing but a disaster. No one needs to see me fall apart like that. Least of all him.

            Actually, maybe least of all me.




GIVEAWAY

- One winner will receive a hardcover of THIS RAGING LIGHT 
and a bottle of Essie Nail Polish that matches the book cover!
- US only. 
- Giveaway ends December 31st at midnight EST.

(*Bumbles and Fairy-Tales will not be held responsible for any lost, damaged, stolen, etc. prizes.)




ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Estelle Laure


Estelle Laure is a Vonnegut worshipper who believes in love and magic and the power of facing hard truths. 

She has a BA in Theatre Arts from New Mexico State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and thinks everyone should have to wait tables or work in a kitchen at least once in their lives. 

She lives in Taos, New Mexico with her children.



Thursday, June 4, 2015

Blog Tour (Interview and Giveaway): CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD by Anne Heltzel (YA)



CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD
by Anne Heltzel
Release date: June 2nd, 2015
Published by HMH Books for Young Readers
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Mystery
Format: Hardcover, eBook


SUMMARY

In Paris, family and friends gather to mourn the tragic passing of Charlie Price — young, handsome, charming, a world-traveler — who is presumed dead after an explosion. Authorities find only a bloodied jacket, ID’d as Charlie’s. 

At the funeral, two teens who are perfect strangers, Lena Whitney and Aubrey Boroughs, make another shocking discovery: they have both been dating Charlie, both think Charlie loved them and them alone, and there is a lot they didn’t know about their boyfriend. 

Over the next week, a mind-bending trip unfolds: first in London — then in Mumbai, Kerala, and Bangkok, the girls go in search of Charlie. Is he still alive? What did their love for him even mean? The truth is out there, but soon it becomes clear that the girls are harboring secrets of their own. 

No one knows whom to trust in this thrilling tale of suspense and deception.




PURCHASE LINKS




INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR - Anne Heltzel

Thank you, Anne, for taking the time today to answer a few questions about your latest book – CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD!


*CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD is a very unique story, what inspired you to work on it?

In all (mortifying) honesty, I once dated a guy who was busy declaring his love for me while simultaneously dating another girl. It was intense and disturbing and dramatic. I won’t get into exactly how complex his lies were, but it was the stuff of Lifetime Original movies. His girlfriend figured it all out by snooping in his phone, and it was she who contacted me to out him. Our ensuing email exchanges (which were supportive and relatively compassionate) made me wonder about the phenomenon of girl friendship born from boyfriend betrayal.

*Which character spoke to you first - Charlie, Aubrey or Lena? And did you know right away who they were and what their story was going to be, or did they grow into something more than you thought that they were capable of?

Of the two girls, Lena was fully formed before Aubrey was. She seemed like the kind of girl who’d be up for anything, so it made sense that she’d push for the international manhunt. She has an impulsive streak I can relate to, and the fact that she doesn’t put limits on her experiences — no matter how unconventional — inspired me. Lena needed to be contained and Aubrey needed to be coaxed out, so it makes sense to me now that Lena — always full to overflowing — felt a little more real at first.

*What kind of research did you have to do in order to incorporate all of the traveling that was involved in the story?

I lived in Paris for a year and Mumbai for about a year and a half, and I studied abroad in London many years ago. While I was living in Mumbai, I was very lucky to be able to travel briefly across China and Thailand, as well as other parts of India. Mumbai was by far the easiest city to write about, because I remembered it most vividly — it left a deep emotional impression. I did have to research Bangkok prisons (fascinating and heartbreaking) as well as London nightclubs (it’d been a while); and I had to do a refresher on the layout of Paris. But almost all the rest was from memory. It was a lot of fun to mentally revisit my old stomping grounds — it made me very eager to return to Asia in particular.

*I am obsessed with book titles – was CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD the original title? Or were there other titles that were being considered?

It was! It just popped into my head. I’m not saying it’s the greatest title in the world, but I do think it fits — and titling has never come to me so easily since!

*On a fun note! What do you think Aubrey’s favorite fairy-tale(s) and/or fairy-tale character(s) would be? Lena’s?

I could see Aubrey liking Thumbelina and Lena being into Rumpelstiltskin.


Thank you again for taking the time to chat with me, Anne!!!



GIVEAWAY


- 3 winners will receive a finished copy of CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD 
- and a Gold Rose Necklace & Antique Gold Pewter Rose Charm on a Delicate 18 Inch Gold Plated Cable Chain. (Pictured above.) 
- US Only.



ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Anne Heltzel

Author Photo by Kristi Hedberg Photography

ANNE HELTZEL is a Brooklyn-based author and editor of children's books. 

Anne was born in Ohio, has been a voracious reader since the age of three, and credits her careers in publishing and writing (both lifelong dreams - just ask to see her childhood journal) to a serendipitous coffee shop conversation during her senior year of college. Anne was on a law school track until the aforementioned fateful conversation prompted her to switch gears and move to New York City, where she entered an M.F.A. program. 

In 2007 she began her first job in publishing. 
In 2008 she graduated from The New School with a master's degree in Writing for Children. 

Anne has since lived in India and Paris, and has taught writing and reading workshops in each of her former homes. More recently, she participated as a mentor in NYC's Girls Write Now program. 

When she is not writing, Anne is furiously (and passionately) editing novels for a Manhattan publishing house. She is represented by Stephen Barbara at InkWell Management. 

Anne also writes under the pseudonym Anna Collomore.




http://www.rockstarbooktours.com/

CHARLIE, PRESUMED DEAD Blog Tour Schedule

Week One:
5/25/2015- Falling For YA- Interview
5/26/2015- The Bibliophile Chronicles- Review
5/27/2015- Moonlight Gleam Reviews- Guest Post
5/28/2015- Book Briefs- Review
5/29/2015- Fiktshun- Interview

Week Two:
6/1/2015- One Guy's Guide to Good Reads- Review
6/2/2015- Literary Meanderings- Guest Post
6/3/2015- Seeing Double In Neverland- Review
6/4/2015- Bumbles and Fairy-Tales- Interview
6/5/2015- Please feed the bookworm- Review


Friday, September 5, 2014

Book Trailer Friday #2: ZAC & MIA by A.J. Betts (YA)


I have a new addiction: BOOK TRAILERS!!!
I'm an "old lady" who doesn't do much late Friday nights except read... 
until I discovered that there are a lot of book trailers out there! And more and more are being made and released, and I cannot help myself! I'm going to start sharing a few of my old and new favorite book trailers :) 


by A.J. Betts
Release date: September 2nd, 2014
Published by: HMH Books for Young Readers
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Format: Hardcover, eBook 


SUMMARY

The Fault in Our Stars meets Eleanor and Park in this tough and tender young adult novel that's a lot about love (and a little about cancer).

Winner of the 2012 Australian Text Prize


"When I was little I believed in Jesus and Santa, spontaneous combustion, and the Loch Ness monster. Now I believe in science, statistics, and antibiotics." 

So says seventeen-year-old Zac Meier during a long, grueling leukemia treatment in Perth, Australia. 

A loud blast of Lady Gaga alerts him to the presence of Mia, the angry, not-at-all-stoic cancer patient in the room next door. 

Once released, the two near-strangers can't forget each other, even as they desperately try to resume normal lives. 

The story of their mysterious connection drives this unflinchingly tough, tender novel told in two voices.


ZAC & MIA's book trailer



MY THOUGHTS

I honestly don't know what to think, especially since I have recently/already read the book...
I feel like the characters voices are falling a bit flat and not really reflecting their personalities.

Other than that, the summary is spot on and I really, really loved this book to pieces! 

This is right up there with the works of Rainbow Rowell's ELEANOR & PARK and E. Lockhart's writing in WE WERE LIARS... a true favorite!!! 


What do you think of ZAC & MIA?!?!
My review will be posted sometime on September 13th or 14th... 

Got any favorite book trailers?! Please share!!! 

 
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