Thursday, February 18, 2016

Scorching Quotes from INTO THE FIRE Release Celebration

It's time! INTO THE FIRE, book 1 of the INTO THE FIRE Trilogy has been released and it is burning up the pages and devices of readers everywhere. If you haven't grabbed your copy yet, now's the perfect time! Here's a quick recap:

http://amzn.to/1Thk38Y
 
Buy your copy now: http://amzn.to/1Thk38Y
 


Synopsis:

In one month’s time, seventeen-year-old Cara Tillman will die and be reborn from her own ashes…

Her life of secrecy has never been easy. She’s watched her younger brother, Jeremy, burn and rise again in a coming-of-age process called rebirth. And just like her brother, when her time comes, she won’t remember anything from her first life other than she’s a Phoenix—a member of a small group of people descended from the mythical Phoenix bird.

The last thing she needs to worry about is falling for the new guy in town—Logan Schmidt.

Cara is drawn to Logan in a way she can’t explain, but she’s not exactly complaining. Everything is perfect…except it’s not. Once she’s reborn, she’ll forget Logan. And to make things worse, a Phoenix Hunter is on the loose, and Cara’s involvement with Logan is bringing out her Phoenix qualities—the very qualities that will draw the Hunter right to her.

Desperate times call for desperate measures…

Afraid of hurting Logan, Cara breaks it off for good. But her attraction to him runs deeper than a typical high school crush. She wants him—needs him. And if he proves willing to stay by her side, their love might destroy them both.

Can Cara hide from the Phoenix Hunters long enough to survive her rebirth? And if so, will it mean a new beginning with Logan—or the beginning of the end?


Book 2, Out of the Ashes, is set to release on 3/2/16, and Up in Flames, book 3 releases on 4/12/16. So you can read book one in time to nab books 2 and 3 in just a couple months. Yay! I hope you'll come back here to fanboy with me about all your Cara/Logan favorite moments and we can discuss all the twists and turns that these two go through at the hands of the Hunters, and as Cara and her family of phoenixes learns more about their powers, including each rebirth.

Find Kelly Hashway on her website, blog, Facebook Author Page, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest, Amazon Author Page, GoodReads Author Page, Into the Fire on GoodReads, and YouTube.

To celebrate the release of Into the Fire, here's a few scorching hot quotes to get you ready to dive into this great paranormal romance series:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Name your favorite quotes in the comments below. And if you're an Amazon member with Kindle Unlimited access, you can read Into the Fire for free! As always, thanks for stopping by the blog!
 
http://amzn.to/1Thk38Y
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Book Review: THE BROKEN HALF by Sahar Abdulaziz

The Broken HalfThe Broken Half by Sahar Abdulaziz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Still reeling from the onslaught of pages, I am not sure I can adequately express how profoundly this book has changed me, leveled me to the ground, dropped a building on top of me, throttled me through the jarring effects of an 8.0 earthquake (which I have personally experienced), or otherwise left me an inarticulate glob of human numbed by the harrowing story of Zahar Evans and what she suffered at the menacing hands of her husband Jamal. In one aspect, this is the story of a woman trapped in a difficult situation with no apparent means of escape. Yet, despite this obstacle, Abdulaziz spared no amount of obstacles firmly lobbed at Zahar at a dizzying and often breakneck speed, deftly written in an account that seemed to fly by as if the reader were watching CNN live, or some other streaming news account happening right now.
The setting is modern, and easily incorporated into the background as the story unfolds. Within this story a secondary, yet equally important layer of story paralleled the main plot. A moderate Muslim community, the masjid, the Imam, the brothers and sisters living out their faith, demonstrating their customs, and in a way that the reader can approach even if he or she has zero knowledge of the Muslim culture or religion. I found this aspect of the story fascinating and illuminating as at times characters experience the intolerance and bigotry our culture so easily assumes in the face of anything it doesn't understand. This made me want to read the book all the more.
The characters are well developed and fully realized. Of particular interest, I most loved the marriage of Tamim and Hawadah. Hawadah is a secret best friend of Zahar, and I always delighted in those parts of the story where they were included. Still, I must say that Abdulaziz gave every character a challenge to face, and spared no amount of troubles to sprinkle by the bucket full at nearly every character, beloved or not. I am not one who weeps easily or often. Very rarely, in fact. However, I found myself openly and unashamedly weeping at several times in this book.
Finally, this book addresses the issue of domestic violence in the context of a married couple, and many of the related aspects including the assumption of male supremacy over women, those who are religious, and those who live a life in reverence. Bias, bigotry, prejudice, cultural insensitivity, vengeance, retribution, retaliation, revenge, generational curses, and so on.
This is a powerful story, that may not allow you to do anything else until you sit down and read it cover to cover in one sitting. But it is one that will stay with you long after you've finished, and will call out to you to be pondered and shared. Highly recommended. A must read.

View all my reviews

Saturday, February 6, 2016

INTO THE FIRE by Kelly Hashway Cover Reveal

 

Into The Fire by Kelly Hashway has a brand new cover!

 
But before you check out the new cover, why not read the description of the story synopsis to whet your appetite for more?
 
from the upcoming Into the Fire Trilogy Series:
 
_____________________________________________________________
 
Synopsis for Into the Fire (Book 1): 
In one month’s time, seventeen-year-old Cara Tillman will die and be reborn from her own ashes…
 
Her life of secrecy has never been easy. She’s watched her younger brother, Jeremy, burn and rise again in a coming-of-age process called rebirth. And just like her brother, when her time comes, she won’t remember anything from her first life other than she’s a Phoenix—a member of a small group of people descended from the mythical Phoenix bird.
 
The last thing she needs to worry about is falling for the new guy in town—Logan Schmidt.

Cara is drawn to Logan in a way she can’t explain, but she’s not exactly complaining. Everything is perfect…except it’s not. Once she’s reborn, she’ll forget Logan. And to make things worse, a Phoenix Hunter is on the loose, and Cara’s involvement with Logan is bringing out her Phoenix qualities—the very qualities that will draw the Hunter right to her.
 
Desperate times call for desperate measures…

Afraid of hurting Logan, Cara breaks it off for good. But her attraction to him runs deeper than a typical high school crush. She wants him—needs him. And if he proves willing to stay by her side, their love might destroy them both.

Can Cara hide from the Phoenix Hunters long enough to survive her rebirth? And if so, will it mean a new beginning with Logan—or the beginning of the end?
_____________________________________________________________
 
YA Author Kelly Hashway
 
Now that you've read the description, meet the author, Kelly Hashway. Kelly is the author of several speculative fiction tiles and series, including:
 
YA Touch of Death Series:
Touch of Death
Stalked by Death
Face of Death
 
and the Touch of Death Prequels:
Curse of Death
Kiss of Death
 
YA Monster Within Series:
The Monster Within
The Darkness Within
 
YA Into the Fire Trilogy Series:
Into the Fire (Book 1)
Out of the Ashes (Book 2)
Up in Flames (Book 3)
 
As well as a MG series (Curse of the Granville Fortune), and picture books. For more information, check out Kelly's website: www.kellyhashway.com
 
Author Bio:
Kelly Hashway grew up reading R.L. Stein’s Fear Street novels and writing stories of her own, so it was no surprise to her family when she majored in English and later obtained a masters degree in English Secondary Education from East Stroudsburg University. After teaching middle school language arts for seven years, Hashway went back to school and focused specifically on writing. She is now the author of three young adult series, one middle grade series, and several picture books. She also writes contemporary romance under the pen name Ashelyn Drake. When she isn’t writing, Hashway works as a freelance editor for small presses as well as for her own list of clients. In her spare time, she enjoys running, traveling, and volunteering with the PTO. Hashway currently resides in Pennsylvania with her husband, daughter, and two pets.
 
Hashway is represented by Sarah Negovetich of Corvisiero Literary Agency.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
...
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Now it's time to reveal the amazing new cover for book one of the Into the Fire Trilogy, which is completely breathtaking:
 
http://amzn.to/1nPz3Q1
 
 
Don't just stare, click the cover to place your pre-order! Okay, stare for as long as you like, then go pre-order your copy. Stunning, right? I know! The great news is there's even more content this time, and the story is even better than before. I cannot even imagine how it could possibly get any better, other than adding MORE story, which she did! I loved the first two books, and am currently reading book three, and OMG, it's amazing.
 
You won't have to wait long for it, either, since book 1 is coming out 2/16/16, followed by book 2 on 3/2/16, and finally, book 3 on 4/12/16. Hooray! I am so excited for this series, I can't even stand it. I am thrilled to get to share it with you and soon we can all fanboy and fangirl about it like crazy. Feel free to come back here and tell me what you think of book 1.

Into the Fire is an amazing read. Plenty of fire, lots of kissing, and scorching hot besides. Grab your copy now. You won't want to grab it Out of the Ashes. You might get singed. Get yours before it goes Up in Flames.