Striking, a Report Card... Book Review.

Report Card Book Review Title Striking (Amazon Link) Book list price N/A Author Rachel Higginson and Lila Felix eBook Price $3.99 Publisher Self-Published Stand alone or Series Series Genre NA Romance # in Series 1 of 4 Story- Overall Grade A Cami has lived a life of privilege. She’s materialistic, self-involved, and immature, and when her self-destructive actions spiral down to an all-new low, her socialite parents do the only thing they can think of by sending her off to her aunts sheep farm in Tennessee where she has to earn her keep by working. As in physical labor... as in absolute torture in Cami’s mind. She meets Stockton, the desperately gorgeous, and annoying, town blacksmith. Can they be brave enough to follow their dreams and will doing that pull them further apart? Plot A Romantic Subplot A I love these two together. Stockton and Cami have the ‘opposite’s attract’ thing down. I’m in love with their dynamic! Originality B Nothing too new, but I love the blacksmithing angle… a lot. Obstacle/Crisis B+ There’s not really anything external to overcome in this story, all the conflict is the angsty-internal kind. ‘Adult Content’ A Appropriate for older YA readers, and any steamy scenes (no actual sex) were very well written, and not cliché at all. Ending A Dum-dumdumduuuummmmm. Well done, and not contrived. Yay. Characters A Great cast of original characters. They were complete and well rounded, with strengths and weaknesses that were true to their characters. No cookie cutouts in this book! Protagonist A Cami is great. By that, I mean she seems real; she’s certainly not lovable at the beginning of the book. But we watch her undergo real growth, and I like that. Other Protagonist A Sexy, muscular, artistic, responsible? Seriously, what’s not to love? Supporting characters. A- They were great, but you only get a chance to fall in love with a couple of them; this story is very focused on Cami and Stockton Overall Development A The main character could have been based off of real people, that’s how well developed they were. Realistic problems. Character relationships A- Finally a love story with the characters taking the time to know each other before pulling out the ‘L’ word. Minor points off for the ‘drawn to each other at first sight’, but I take points off of all romance books for that… personal preference! Good role model A Cami is a great role model. Not because she always does the right thing, but because she learns from her mistakes. By the end of the book, she is willing to sacrifice a love (twoo wove) because she deserves respect and trust. Writing A- This would be an A but for some grammatical errors. The story flowed really well, and was easy to follow without being elementary. We got a perfect feeling for the characters, and a pretty decent one of their surroundings. Prose A Author’s Voice A These two women alternated chapters, each taking a main characters POV for the entire story. It was a very smart move, and we got a separate feeling from each protagonist, and therefore author. Editing A- In the edition I read, there were several small errors in grammar and punctuation. That being said, I read an ARC (in exchange for an honest review), so they may have been corrected by release date. Either way, it didn’t detract from the story for me. Punctuation, spelling and grammar B Additional Notes- A great romance read. This is in the New Adult genre, which is one that I’m not overly familiar with, but it seems to fit the bill. The story is good, the character development in Cami is great, and I really love how the main characters aren’t perfect and how they get in their own way more than anything else; it’s very realistic. ·       Some steamy make-out scenes, I’d still give this book an A-OK for teens to read even though it’s directed at 18-20somethings. ·       There will be more books in this series, each dedicated to one of Stocktons siblings. That means 3 more books.

Love&Decay, Epidsode 4

click the pic to go to
amazon.com and buy
the novella for $.99

This weeks episode of our favorite Novella series is Haleylicious. Being in her POV for a change, we really get to know this girl as something more than Reagan's bestie.

The crew found a rare treasure in their travels... electricity. Run by solar panels, the house and surrounding land at first seem a godsend. At least for a temporary retreat.

You'd think the day couldn't get any better right? After all, Haley finally has a chance to charge her iPod and listen to music to calm her overactive brain, she has a hunky man that kisses like a dream and is willing to woo her in a world gone to chaos, and they're relatively safe...

But then Page, the Parker's little sister, and someone Haley and Reagan have fully adopted into their hearts, get sick. Looks like strep throat. But without antibiotics and no way to reduce the fever, this illness could spell disaster, and heartache, for the team.

A stranger, just a boy, shows up and swears he know where some meds are... And Hendrix and Nelson are just the guys to volunteer to go.

But is is worth the risk to sneak into a militia's to get them?

And will they get back in time to save their sister?



We won't find out until the Episode 5.
Yeah, cliffhanger time.

Striking Blog Tour, All Aboard!

Have you seen the synopsis, and cover, of Striking yet (check it out HERE, if not!)? The fabulous book, co-written by Rachel Higginson and Lila Felix is set to release on September first. To get y'all good and ready for it (yes, I live in The South), we're doing a blog tour. Actually, there will be two blog tours going on for the next 3 weeks.

Here are all the stops, updated as they come in.

8-22 An Interview with Rachel Higginson, by me of course. It's awesome... we talk about writing, motherhood, and the ever important coffee.

8-24 Author Interview with Lila Felix and Rachel Higginson, by Christy at Christy's Written Word Love. They discuss the sexiness of blacksmithing, and how they initially partnered up to write Striking! Lots of great things I didn't think to ask, haha.

8-26 Reckless Rebels Blog Tour-Charming Interview with Lila Felix and Rachel Higginson, co-authors of Striking (Forged in Fire #1), by Haley and Caylie at H&C Reads. These lovely ladies talk about big life moments, their favorite scenes to write in Striking, and their most emotional book scenes for them to write.

8-28 Character Interview w/ the stars of Striking by Rachel Higginson and Lila Felix, by Christina on Christina's Book Reviews. A great interview with Cami and Stockton, the lead characters in this great book.

More to come, as they come!

• To find out more about Rachel Higginson, check out her website http://www.rachelhigginson.com/
• buy her books at Amazon.com
• To find out more about Lila Felix, check out her website at http://authorlilafelix.blogspot.com/
• buy her books at Amazon.com 

An interview with Rachel Higginson! Striking blog tour.

As most of you have probably guessed by now, I am a huge fan of the works of one Rachel Higginson. Thanks to my Kindle, I read a lot of self-published works... And indie has a lot of variances in quality. Rachel's works, however, are the cream at the top that make the Indie genre worth reading.

To celebrate her upcoming release of Striking, cowritten by Lila Felix, I asked if Rachel would be willing to do an interview with me. 

I am a huge fan of all the female protagonists in your books. If you were sitting down to eat with Eden, Stella, Reagan, Ivy, Ellie, and the star of your newest book Cami, what would you ladies talk about? What would the girls think of each other? Who would you sit next to? And for goodness sake, what would you be eating?

Thank you so much Regan! And thank you for having me on your fabulous blog!

I love my leading ladies, so it’s great to hear that you do too! First of all, this would be the best afternoon of my life! I would love to hang out with all my girls and share a meal. Well, outside of my head…. J

I think the first thing we would have to talk about would of course be the boys!! I mean, some of them are in some pretty difficult places with men, and we’d of course need to work out those issues. And those who are settled into their happily-ever-afters already would be required to dish all the delicious details. That would be priority number one. Obviously.

Then I’d just love to hear a firsthand account of their struggles from their perspective. I’d want to hear Eden tell her plight to save Lilly the first time from her point of view. Or what it was like for Stella to be trapped in that locker room with Seth, surrounded by such palpable evil. And I’d want to hear Cami’s humble account of spending time in Tennessee and when she felt her life was changing. I foresee hours and hours of conversation in our future!

And it would be such a relaxed atmosphere. All my girls are adventurous foodies, so we’d sit down over Indian and share roti and vegetable samosas. We’d eat with our hands, and drink King Fishers and just laugh until we cried. I would need to sit by Eden- my literary BFF. But the other girls all come in at a very close second. And they would love each other. I imagine Cami and Ivy would get really close with their mutual love of fashion and ex-mean girl ways. And Reagan and Ellie have that sarcastic, dry humor thing in common. They would keep us laughing at everything they said! And Stella and Eden would hit it off right away too, since they have that whole saving-everyone-they-love thing going for them. I’d make Eden recreate the Morocco desert tent- only the less sexy version- and we’d just enjoy the most fabulous girls’ night out ever.

I used to work as a barista and you can learn a lot about a person by their regular coffee order. If you had to pick up coffee for the gang, what would their orders be? How about yours?

Striking, What a Beautiful Cover... Reveal.

How pretty is this cover?

So, by now you should know that I'm a huge fan of Indie Author, Rachel Higginson. You should be too. To help convert you, later this week I'll be posting an interview with the lady about her upcoming book with cowriter Lila Felix, Striking.

It has blacksmiths in it. Blacksmithing=awesome. So go on over to Goodreads (by clicking here) and put it on your 'to-read' shelf... along with all her other books. You won't regret it.

To tide you over until then, here's the synopsis:

Can two hearts be forged into one?

Cami Montgomery stole a car and smashed it into the front of a building in upscale Beverly Hills after a lousy date with the epitome of sleaze balls. The worst part, her parents are following through on threats after this latest plea for attention. Banished from her L.A. paradise and plunged into the Appalachian Mountains with her industrious aunt and uncle, Cami is about to find out how precious life really is.

Stockton Wright has been thrust into a hard life. He sacrifices everything to give his family and community what they need. He’s exhausted from life and work—and he’s only twenty four. What he needs is some change, and some sunshine. Even he will agree to that. He just doesn’t expect to find it in a stuck up, pompous, entitled Californian.

Cami bursts into Stockton’s life like wildfire, consuming all his thoughts and tangling him in her web. What starts out as a contentious rivalry evolves into a desire neither of them expected. When hammer meets metal, will they crack under pressure or be forged as one?

Cami and Stockton might just end up being exactly what the other one needs, but first their love will have to be drawn out in fire.

Love & Decay, Episode 3

We catch up with Reagan and company still traveling south, only this time they're on foot. And smelly. Well, Reagan is at least. And considering she shot a zombie in the head from zero feet away, it's understandable; being covered in rotting brain matter certainly doesn't make you smell like roses.

Luckily she has one completely drool-worthy man to wash her hair for her, though she doesn't feel lucky so much as trapped by Hendrix, and her own, feelings that have no place for the whole world-ending situation they were in. And having corpse washed out of your hair should not feel like an intimate moment, but I suppose the zombie apocalypse make's all sorts of weird situations seem normal...

Our group is going south on-foot, they're low on ammo, the only shelter for miles is a dilapidated shed, and some zombie too far to kill is screeching into night.

Or could he be calling for backup?

Reagan and Haley had been hearing rumors of organized zombies to the south. Zombies capable of working together; zombies capable of forming an army. And as our gang of bad-ass zombie killers are surrounded by a mass of rotting undead, Reagan can't help but think that this fight feels different.



Man, oh man. The tension between Reagan and Hendrix is just delicious. Higginson manages to create a lot of sexual tension in a very PG manner, and I'm not entirely sure how. Because nothing inappropriate is done or mentioned... but oh do you want it to be. Another great installment, and of course I can't wait for the next one. Which should be next Friday.

• Love & Decay, episode 3 is $.99 on Amazon
• a new episode in this novella series comes out every two weeks
• There is graphic violence, and a few swear-jar words, but appropriate for younger readers (13+)

Love & Decay, Episode 2

This weeks installment of Rachel Higginson's new zombie series takes place one week after the events in Episode 1, and our crew has settled into a (somewhat) comfortable routine of southward migration. Comfortable, that is, until they come across a road block of zombies... Of course, they're used to zombies.

What they aren't used to are settlements that use zombies as a blockade AND test for would-be visitors (or passers-through). Settlers that have very particular ideas on the role that a women should play in this new world. And it's not a role that sits right with Reagan, Haley, OR the Parker brothers.

It especially doesn't sit well with Hendrix. He of the smoldering eyes and not-so-subtle hints of feelings that are far too inappropriate for an apocalyptic setting. While his brother may be fine with elementary-style flirting his way into the heart of Haley, Hendrix is willing to wait for Reagan to realize, what in his mind, is inevitable...

But, while Reagan in unequivocally drawn to Hendrix despite his infuriating attitude and over-evolved sense of protection, his older brother Vaughan is making a confusing situation even more difficult with his easy jokes and genuine good-guy attitude...

Who knew that the end of the world would have so many hunky bachelors to choose from?

Fun facts

• This is the second installment, and is due to release the weekend of July 26th
• episode 2, like the first one, will only cost $.99
• This series is modeled after t.v. shows.... 12 total episodes (novellas), one released every two weeks, and a small hiatus after all 12 are 'aired' before the next 'season' starts. So you don't have long to wait until the next installment.

Book Review of The Rush, by Rachel Higginson

The first in a new Rachel Higginson series, The Rush certainly lives up to her other works!

Ivy lives a fairy tale life. She's beautiful, has all the best clothes, and can get any guy she wants... Too bad she's doesn't really want any. She is born into a society of sirens, sirens that have adapted to the modern world quite well. No more ship-wrecked sailors for these women, and Ivy is groomed from a young age to be able to attract men. She knows how to talk, walk, and look seductive. She knows how to manipulate men to get what she wants, overkill considering they fall in love with her immediately... it doesn't matter that she's only 16, and it certainly doesn't matter the she is wracked with guilt because of her very existence, hating her effect on the people around her but unable to break away from her family and the role she was born to play.

This book is significantly darker than most others... the heroine isn't some happy-go-lucky girl at the beginning of the book. She's damaged, and exhausted from acting the part. The situations she gets into in this book aren't the 'big battle, good vs. evil'... is the kind of evil that happens in real life. Lusty eyes from an older man that has complete control over her, near-rape, being pimped out by her own mother... It's kind of shattering because this type of thing does happen, though without the Siren part of it. It might be in smaller degrees, but tons of mothers groom their daughters to catch a man (yes, it still happens), encourage flirtations and promiscuity, look the other way at blatant emotional abuse... at blatant emotional damage.

I would NOT recommend this for the very young YA reader. Nothing too 'adult' happens, there is no sex, no drugs, though there is some alcohol... but it is still too mature for the youngest YA readers.

• This book is the first in a series
• Andrew James wrote a song specifically for this book; the lyrics are used in the story. Check it out here.
• It is currently $3.99 on Amazon.... buy it here
• Find out about more upcoming projects at Rachel Higginson's website. http://www.rachelhigginson.com/ and go like her on Facebook! 

Love & Decay, a book review

I don't usually read novellas... because I always want a lot more story when I read that last page, and I'm not ready to be done with it yet...

Good thing about the Love and Decay series... in two weeks the story will continue. And again two weeks after that.

Reagan just went through a pretty bad breakup. Sure, most girls do at some point or another.. but really this one was bad. She found out that perfect Quarterback Chris was cheating on her in the worst way possible; he tried to eat her brains. A common side affect to the new Herpies Cure which has successfully brought on the, you guessed it, Zombie Apocalypse. So, after that rather messy breakup (she had to sever his head with her car before he got the message...), Reagan is sure that she's done with men. Especially since most of the still human-men in the post-apocalyptic world are intent on making her and her best-friend sister-wives for an entire community of militia-men. So when the two girls are unexpectedly saved from a room full of face-eaters by the drool-worthy Hendrix and his handful of brothers, she surprised by their adamant refusal to rape and/or pillage... even more surprised by the what she sees in his eyes when he looks at her and the feelings it brings out in her. Feelings that have no place in the world they live in.

This is a great start to a very promising eSeries, and oh my jeebus I can't wait to read more!

Love and Decay is by Rachel Higginson (visit her site here). It's only $.99 right now, so you should go buy it... here.

Bella Swan vs. Eden Matthews... all about the role models.

VS

I want to tell you about this great series: it has a love triangle between a stubborn girl, her perfect-looking immortal boyfriend, and her (also immortal) male best-friend. The main character is surrounded by people that can turn into animals, or read minds, are virtually indestructible, are super strong and fast, seem to be allergic to death and she didn't even know these people existed at the beginning of the books. She goes through a lot of impossible things throughout the four-book series, and in the end, after discovering her own unique power, wins a battle against the oppressive ruling class...


It's not what you think. It's really really not.

I'm really trying to tell you about the Star-Crossed series, a kick butt series by Indie Author, Rachel Higginson.

Before I go any farther, Twihards... you are about to get really mad at me. Don't get me wrong, I read the series multiple times and will probably read it again; Meyers certainly writes a page turner... Unfortunately after you finally close the last page you realize you just read a bunch dirty, filthy, crazy-person words that makes it seem ok to not only date an abusive pedophile stalker, but that you, as a [female] person, are defined by your romantic relationships.

So, I'm going to do a little character comparison between two series that seem to have similar archetypal characters.

Both girls start their first day of a new school
Eden is immediately an outcast
Bella is immediately popular and sought out by every boy in school

They both start forming an attraction to a beautiful boy but is soon warned away for very good reasons
Eden tries to follow advice but falls in love anyways
Bella immediately ignores advice and pursues relationship

Boyfriend forbids her from going somewhere
Eden steals a passport and credit card to travel across the world to save her friend anyways
Bella gets slightly frustrated but does nothing

Eden finds out that Kiran is engaged, she tries to ignore and stay away from him
Bella finds out that Edward is 100 years old and sneaks into her room at night to watch her sleep... she blushes.

Eventually they both get their heart broken by their boyfriend when he tried to do something 'for her own good'
Eden breaks up with him and becomes the leader of a revolution intent on destroying the monarchy and freeing her people
Bella goes through months in a fog, doesn't speak to anyone, and eventually starts jumping off cliffs so that she can hallucinate her boyfriends voice

While mourning the loss of their relationship, both girls rely heavily on a best friend that is in love with them
Eden eventually gives a relationship with friend a chance, actively trying to move on from the past
Bella uses him as a buffer from other guys and... er... jumps off cliffs!

Boyfriend says sorry
Eden threatens to kill him
Bella forgives him instantly

To earn back her trust/deserve her love:
Kiran becomes an integral part of the the revolution that plans to kill his father, the king, and helps free his people from oppression
Edward looks deeply into her eyes and promises to never leave again


There are clearly a lot of parallels between these two series; even more than I mentioned. And I'm well aware that I'm being a little harsh on Meyers' series. But I hear so many girls saying 'can't wait to find my Edward'. So many girls content to act like a 'Bella' and live happily ever after.

Bella is not a character that any young girl should strive to be like.

She, my friends, is a wimp. She is a pushover. She is in a relationship with a controlling, overbearing, way-to-old-for-her man, and constantly seeks out dangerous behavior for no good reason, trusting completely that someone else will rescue her if things 'go too far'.

Bella starts this series out as a human and wants nothing more than to be something non-human. When she finally is, Meyers' wrote about how much more Bella could feel and see, her human life being almost like a foggy dream.

Likewise, Eden also starts out the series thinking she is a human... it turns out she isn't, but there is always that respect for humanity. Eden is constantly defending her upbringing (raised as a human) against the immortals that think they're better.

It really just seems like Higginson has more respect for humanity, because being human is just as real as being nonhuman in her books. Sure, the Cullins respect humans by not sucking their blood, but Bella's transformation into a Vampire shows that vampires are far superior than human beings; smarter, faster, and can feel a larger depth of emotion... it seems that Vampires are to humans as humans are to animals, which makes the Cullens 'Vegetarianism' almost offensive. Yes, I'm ranting now...

Back to the subject at hand.

Eden is not a wimp. She is stubborn to the point of density, and she barely figures anything out on her own. I'll say that for Bella; she suspects somethings a little wonky with the Cullen clan, and she tries, and succeeds, in figuring it out. Eden literally blows things up and still needs to be told that she is magic.... But no character is without their flaws. She has a love that is just is strong as Bella's, but Edens love story doesn't define her. It's not who she is, not the most important facet of her life. She is connected to Kiran, they 'complete' each other... but that doesn't mean she's half a person without him. She does things, meets people, kidnaps princes and bodyguards, rescues prisoners... she doesn't just mope around.

Because in real life, if your boyfriend breaks your heart... moping around for months is not healthy. It's not ok. Jumping off cliffs is not a good thing either. You might say 'but she loved him so much'... what if your best friend got dumped and started acting like Bella? Would she be justified in her crazy-pants behavior or would you be scheduling an intervention with her family and a very good therapist?

The point of this blog? I forget...

Wait! Go read the Star-Crossed series. Discover an overpowering love story that at least mimics healthy human behavior. Make a Team Kiran shirt and wear it proudly, cuz that boy actually deserves fan adulation.

Book 1 in the Star-Crossed series is Reckless Magic... It's even free, so go ahead and give it a try. You'll thank me.

AotW: Rachel Higginson!

Ok, so I've neglected my blog for entirely too long.

Sorry about that.

To celebrate my return to the blogging world, this week I'll be focusing on one of my favorites, Indie Author: Rachel Higginson.

My personal writing inspiration, Rachel is the mother of FOUR (that's right) children, and is still pumping out books left and right.

I could go into detail and tell you all sorts of things about Ms. Higginson... But I'm not. If you want to know more about her day to day activities with her full house and her high school sweetheart turned husband, then you should visit the blog on her website http://www.rachelhigginson.com/. There you will also find upcoming releases and information about all her delicious books.

Instead I will tell you that when I downloaded the first book in her Star-Crossed series, Reckless Magic (which is free!), I was hooked within a few pages.

Could.not.put.it.down.

In fact, every single one of her books is completely addictive. So, in celebration of this incredible author, I'll be posting a few reviews on her books. Starting with this one right HERE.

Here are a few links to get you started on your fandom:
Her website
Her Facebook
Her Twitter
and last but not least, her Youtube channel

So go and discover her!

Starbright

Starbright is the first (and so far, only) in a great series by... you guessed it, Rachel Higginson. Ms. Higginson has, once again, created a great read for YA readers of all ages; it is so very appropriate for even the younger readers of the genre. 

Stella is a star, the female version of an angel warrior which are on the lowest ring of Angels that heaven has to offer. That doesn't mean that she isn't important; quite the opposite in fact. Stella is destined to be the future protector of Earth, our dear planet being the last one holding life. One day she will be joined with her counterpart, the male star that she will be connected to in heart, body, and soul. Together they will work to protect Earth from the evil darkness that has been destroying life throughout the galaxy. 

In the meantime Stella is looking forward to life staying the same as it has for the past 16 years, like that of any other small town girl and counting down until her 18th birthday which will mark the complete arrival of her powers. She thought the next few years would consist of going to school, hanging out with her best-friend Tristan, and trying not to glow in the middle of class.