Everneath Teen Book Scene Blog Tour: Top Ten List

Stopping in today is Everneath author Brodi Ashton to share with us a list of ten things her child says to keep her grounded.

Author Top 10s

TOP TEN THINGS MY KID SAYS TO ME TO KEEP ME GROUNDED:

#10 "Percy Jackson already did mythology, and he's a BOY."
#9 "Please don't show your cover to my friends. It's embarrassing."
#8 Me: "I'm going to be in Wal-Mart!" Kid C (shrugging): "I'm in Wal-Mart at least once a week."
#7 "Mom, do you know any REAL authors? Because my teacher needs one to talk to her class."
#6 "Why did you have to write a book about... LOVE?" (Followed by melodramatic gagging sounds)
#5 "Wouldn't it be cool if Nikki ate Jack's BRAINS?! (Yes, he's into Zombies)
#4 (Looking at my cover): "That's a weird looking dude." me: "Um, that's a girl." Him (turning cover upside down): "Oh. I get it." me: "???"
#3 When a friend asked him what my book was about: "Um... Monsters. And dragons. And people who eat BRAINS!" There are none of these things. 
#2 (looking at finished copy) "What, they only made it out of paper?" Tosses it onto floor. me: "Yes, they cancelled the gold leaf printing." 
And the number one thing my kid says to keep me grounded: "WHY CAN'T YOU BE MORE LIKE R.L. STINE?" 

Thank you for sharing that humbling top ten list Brodi! Hopefully we’ll all have people as hilarious as your boy to keep us grounded too.

Description: Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.

As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's...

In stores now!

In the Forrest of the Night tour: Teenage Garage Sale + Giveaway

Today I have the privilege of having Kersten Hamilton on my blog today! She will be giving insight on what she would have had at a garage sale during her teenage years.

By the time I was a teenager, I didn’t own seven items to sell—not unless I sold the boots off of my feet along with the rest of my possessions. My mother had not been in the picture for years. My dad, who had once been a writer, award winning photographer, and awesome storyteller, was slowly going insane. My brothers, sister, and I didn’t know about the brain tumor that was destroying his mind. We only knew that he gradually became unable to keep a job, pay rent, or feed his children. Then he decided that the world was about to end, and he had to hide us from society. From that time on we lived in houses with no electricity or glass in the windows. So, when I was a teen I couldn’t own anything I couldn’t carry with me.

My worldly possessions were: my desert boots, a dog named Shadrach, a snub–nosed .38, a knife, a wood block carving of a unicorn, and my father’s old portable typewriter—the one he had used before I was born to write articles and novels on. He never touched it anymore.

Boots wear out, dogs can’t stay with us forever, and I pawned the .38 one day when I was hungry. All I have left from those days are the unicorn, my knife, that old typewriter…and all the strange experiences I weave into my novels. J

Thank you for having me on your blog today, Kara!

Thanks for stopping by Kersten!

 


Giveaway:

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Ends December 15, 2011

US only

 

 

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Eve Tour: Into the Past+Giveaway

Today Anna Carey is here with a guest post on her favorite books at ages 5, 10, 16 and 20.

Age 5: Caps for Sale by

I remember thinking this book was so funny. I recently re-read it and laughed as hard as I did then. I love how angry the man gets, how he literally throws a tantrum and is screaming at those monkeys. What a lunatic.

Age 10: Babysitters Club by Ann M. Martin

These books established my identity as a reader. I tore through all 150+ of them, and they’re one of the reasons I write for a younger audience. Series like these are a gateway drug.

Age 16: Lord of the Flies by William Golding

I’m sad to say I read only required reading during high school, but I truly enjoyed this book. Oh Piggy. I still scream “I’ve got the conch!” when people aren’t listening to me.

Age 20: Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers

I loved this book not only for the writing, but for what it did for me. I found it after a long period of not touching anything that wasn’t assigned in school. It reminded me why I loved reading. It opened me up again to what good writing can do, how it can make you feel. Shortly after I became an English major, took my first college level creative writing class, and started down a path I’m still on.

Thanks for sharing that look Into Your Past Anna!

Giveaway:

 Fill out this form to try and win a copy of Eve!

Ends October 12, 2011

US only

Author Guest Post:: Jennifer Estep

 Jennifer Estep, author of Touch of Frost was gracious enough to talk about some of her favorite books during her teen years on the blog today:

Greetings and salutations! First of all, I want to thank Kara for having me on the blog today. Thanks so much, Kara!

So today, Kara asked me to list some of my favorite books from my teen years. I always loved to read books in all kinds of genres – mysteries, fantasies, romance, and more. In fact, one of my favorite memories is going to the library with my mom every Saturday to pick out some new books to read for the week. So here are some of my favorite reads from my teen years:

Beauty by Robin McKinley: I’m a sucker for retellings of the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, and McKinley’s book is just a lovely story about a girl who discovers just how kind and noble a beast can really be.

Beastly by Alex Flinn: This book actually came out a few years ago, but it’s another retelling of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale from the Beast’s point of view. It’s a really cool book, and I think I would have loved it as a teen reader just as much as I do now as an adult.

The Baby-sitters Club books: I can’t even tell you how many times I read and reread these books when I was younger. I always enjoyed hanging out with Kristy, Claudia, Mary Anne, and Stacey.

The Sweet Valley High books: Nobody seemed cooler to me than Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield, and these books made me want to be a California girl, just like they were.

The Nancy Drew books: I read tons of Nancy Drew books when I was younger, everything from the old classics to the more modern, updated versions. I always enjoyed trying to figure out the mystery, although I never guessed who the bad guy was before Nancy did.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien: This book has a little bit of everything for fantasy fans – a noble quest, an epic adventure, a dragon, and most importantly a hero who’s a lot stronger than he thinks he is.

The Elenium trilogy by David Eddings: I became interested in epic fantasy when I was in high school, and these are some of the first books that I read in the genre. They’re just really fun adventure stories about the quest to save a young queen, and I still have them on my bookshelf at home today.

The Shannara books by Terry Brooks: I also read the Shannara books when I became interested in epic fantasy, and I enjoyed reading about all the perilous adventures that the heroes and heroines of the various books had.

Watership Down by Richard Adams: I’m also a sucker for animal stories, and this is a really cool, thoughtful book about a group of rabbits who are trying to find a new home for themselves, despite all the dangers they face along the way.

What about you guys? What are some of your favorite reads from your teen years?

Jennifer Estep writes the Mythos Acad­emy young adult urban fan­tasy series for Kens­ing­ton. The books focus on Gwen Frost, a 17-year-old Gypsy girl who has the gift of psy­chom­e­try, or the abil­ity to know an object’s his­tory just by touch­ing it. After a seri­ous freak-out with her magic, Gwen is shipped off to Mythos Acad­emy, a school for the descen­dants of ancient war­riors like Spar­tans, Valkyries, Ama­zons, and more.

Touch of Frost, the first book in the series, was published on July 26. First Frost, a prequel e-story to the series, is also available now as a 99-cent download. Kiss of Frost, the second book, will hit shelves on Nov. 29. Visit www.jenniferestep.com for excerpts and more information.

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Author Guest Post: Christine E. Schulze

Christine E. Schulze, author of the Gailean Quartet series has been nice enough to stop by with a guest post about some of her favorite books and what she'd recommend, and what kind of books we'd find in her "library."

Twelve was a poignant age for me, for both reading and writing, even video games. So, much of my book collection stems from this era. A creative explosion occurred for me around this age, like coming of age, only in the writing realm instead of normal puberty. The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Neverending Story, Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass—all these fantasy classics were making a major impact on my own fantasies I was writing at the time. 

I also attended good Christian schools, so the literature I read there helped influence the Christian themes and values seen in many of my books. Some of these included Pilgrims’ Progress, and a neat little book explaining the origins of various idioms like “it’s raining cats and dogs”! Which reminds me of one of my favorite reference books, a baby name book. Great for finding names for both characters and places, especially if you want them to have specific meanings. A favorite name of mine I drew from there is “Olette”, meaning “small, winged one”. I named my little, winged fox this in my middle grade fantasy, The Last Star.

Around age twelve, I also finally got to play The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, my now-favorite-video-game-of-all-time, which Mum bought after my wanting it since I was eight. She didn’t know my secret obsession over it, but after seeing it at a friend’s house, I was hooked. I actually rushed home that night to write a comic on it.  It was the first video game I’d ever seen with 3D graphics, a real, intricate story-line, and characters you could interact with throughout, like being in a book! It’s as good as any book with its unique, quirky characters, great plot and fantasy elements. All of above inspired books I was working on at the time, such as The Legends of Surprisers series, Loz: Zephyr’s Islands, and Loz: The Mass.

Over the next few years, I honestly don’t remember reading a lot besides the Harry Potter series, plus various other books I got in book sales. I was very busy working on many of my own books. However, even Harry Potter helped inspired the series I wrote around this time, The Hero Chronicles.

The next slue of books mentioned are actually a mix of books I’ve discovered between about eighteen til the present, at age twenty-three. I know that, after Aaron, a best friend of mine, bought me the movie of Howl’s Moving Castle for my birthday, that I soon after read the book and became hooked on Diana Wynne Jones. I consider her a great inspirer to this day, as we seem to share a love for quirky characters, unique fantasy worlds, and intriguing plots. I truly loved Castle in the Air and the first Chrestomanci Chronicles. I am still itching to get my hands on a copy of Dogsbody. I read the blurb and first few pages in Barnes and Noble once, and it inspired me to write my middle grade fantasy, The Last Star, which I hope to procure an agent for in the near future.

I also attended more book fairs at my local library during this time, and one of the books I picked up was a fantasy by Nancy Springer called Chains of Gold. It has some supernatural elements and also tells the story of a young couple daringly escaping a terrible ritual of their people. I think it subconsciously inspired my novel Bloodmaiden, published by Old Line Publishing last year.

I also discovered the world of Stephanie Meyers’ Twilight. Now, for all you haters, I had no clue this was a world-wide fetish or else becoming one at the time. I’d never heard of it, because I generally don’t keep up with what’s going on in the world. I just saw it one day in my college bookstore, read the blurb, and new I must have this book. I’d never done vampires, never been into them, but the concept of romantic, possibly good vampires intrigued me. I usually have honing skills for finding books that I love, and behold, I did it again! The concept of “good” vampires inspired me to create my own in Golden Healer, Dark Enchantress.

Another great vampire book I picked up later—and this one is truly a unique fantasy, so don’t compare to Twilight; all kinds of different stuff going on here—was called Darkangel. I never read the other two in the trilogy though I would like to sometime, but it did inspire me to write a story on gargoyles; you can read the story in October when my Lily in the Snow and Other Elemental Tales is released. 

I lately read Loose Girl and Undiscovered Gyrl, having taken on a recent interest in sexual coming-of-age and exploration. I don’t plan on writing anything overly sexual myself, but who knows? Perhaps I’ll write a book someday.

I would also suggest books like The Forest of Hands and Teeth. I seem to have taken on a bit of a horror fetish, which is reflected in several short stories I’ve written as of late. I still don’t reserve much time for reading with all of my writing and promoting. However, one series I am eager to read is Susan Collins’ Hunger Games, especially as I’ve been told by some readers that Bloodmaiden was a comparable read for them. 

Thank you for those book recommendations and the insight you gave us on how other stories help inspire you when you write!

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Guest Post:Lauren Kate + Giveaway

Guest Post: Lauren Kate Q&A

I’d like to thank Lauren Kate for taking the time to answer my questions.

In honor of Young adults, I wanted to have a themed Q&A. There are three (kind of four) categories – Books, Movies/TV shows, and Music.

Books

What books were influential to you or popular in your teen years?
When I was in middle school, all my friends and I were reading The Babysitters Club books, The Sweet Valley High books, anything by Louis Sachar or Roald Dahl. I also secretly devoured all the Clan of the Cave Bear books, which were really very smutty. In high school, I loved The Giver by Lois Lowry, The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald, and Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.

Do you recommend any of those books now?
All of them! Particularly Dahl, Dickens, and Fitzgerald.

Movies/TV shows
What were your favourite movies?
Sixteen Candles and the Breakfast Club (in high school, people always told me that I looked like Molly Ringwald). My friends and I loved Dazed and Confused, So I Married an Ax Murderer, and The Princess Bride. I also used to watch Gone With the Wind with my mom every year on Thanksgiving.

What were your favourite TV shows, and do you miss any of them?
I miss My So Called Life so much—and I know I’m not alone in this! Jordan Catalano was the biggest stud of all time. I also watched a lot of MTV and I long for the days of awesome music videos.

Which do you like better, movies and TV then or now?
I’m not sure I could pick. I’d definitely pick My So Called Life over any reality show today, or really any show ever. But I love The Office (UK version only!) and Gossip Girl and The Colbert Report nowadays. As for movies, new releases like Hot Tub Time Machine and Inglorious Bastards can definitely hang with all my favourites from childhood.

Music
What were some songs you liked or were popular?
I was in high school during a grunge and punk era, so we loved Pearl Jam, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Green Day. I was also big into Madonna and Gwen Stefani. To this day, my go-to karaoke song is Spiderweb by Gwen Stefani.

Which do you like better, music now or then?
With music (more so than with movies, books, or TV), I have a very strong sense of nostalgia related to the songs of my youth. A Pearl Jam song will remind me of the first car ride I took with a boy, Time of Your Life by Green Day reminds me of my high school graduation. Even though there’s some amazing music coming out these days, it can’t compete with the memories I have tied to all those songs from the 80’s and 90’s!

Additional Question
Is there anything else that really influenced you growing up?
My older brother. Robby is two years older than me and I worshipped him growing up. (I still do, really, but in a different way now.) For so much of my childhood, I thought everyone in the whole world thought of me as Robby’s little sister. I was always trying to keep up, to do as well as he did in school, play the same sports, and all of that. I definitely have younger child syndrome! But, even though he did leave very big shoes to fill, Robby was always, always kind to me. He always included me, always let me hang out with him and his friends, and I never realized how special that was until I got older.

Contest:

Contest Update: I've changed the rules of the contest, as well as the deadline(again... for the very last time). For those who have already entered, I will add 1 extra point to each entry. I also garantee that I will select atleast one winner from the set of people that have already entered.

Thanks to the people at Random House (aka Lauren), aside from being able to interview the awesome author of Fallen and Torment (out September 28, 2010), I also get to throw a contest! 5 winners will get a copy of Torment (amazing right?)!! 3 winners will be from the UK, and 2 International (aka everywhere else).

To enter, you must go somewhere on the internet, such as a blog (must be your own), Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, etc. and tell me why you liked Fallen, or why you're excited for Torment. You MUST also be a follower of my blog.

Extra entries include:

+1 - Commenting on Lauren Kate's Guest post here

+3 - Blog post on contest

+1 - Linking giveaway on sidebar or tweeting

To enter fill out this form

http://fallebooks.co.uk/