Wednesday, 12 February 2014

Book Blast: Win $50! LUMIÈRE by Jacqueline E. Garlick + Excerpt

I'm so excited to be part of the Book Blast for Jacqueline E. Garlick's LUMIÈRE! Just give me a moment to gush over how incredibly beautiful the cover is, and how Jacqueline's hair is such a lovely colour (it's so long and pretty, too!). 

Scroll down to know more about LUMIÈRE and read an excerpt. Don't forget to enter the giveaway below for a chance to win a $50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal cash!

Lumière (Illumination Paradox, #1) by Jacqueline E. Garlick
Publisher: Amazemo Books
Released: December 12th 2013
Genre: Sci-fi, Steampunk Fantasy
One determined girl.
One resourceful boy.
One miracle machine that could destroy everything…

After an unexplained flash shatters her world, seventeen-year-old Eyelet Elsworth sets out to find the Illuminator, her father’s prized invention. With it, she hopes to cure herself of her debilitating seizures before Professor Smrt—her father’s arch nemesis—discovers her secret and locks her away in an asylum.

Pursued by Smrt, Eyelet locates the Illuminator only to see it whisked away. She follows the thief into the world of the unknown, compelled not only by her quest but by the allure of the stranger—Urlick Babbit—who harbors secrets of his own.

Together, they endure deadly Vapours and criminal-infested woods in pursuit of the same goal, only to discover the miracle machine they hoped would solve their problems may in fact be their biggest problem of all.

When darkness is safer than light…
Praise for LUMIÈRE

“One of the most inventive story worlds I’ve read in years…” — Donald Maass, Author of Writing the Breakout Novel, Writing 21st Century Fiction, and The Fire in Fiction

“Such an engaging story featuring witty dialogue, gripping action scenes and a romance that will make your heart melt!” — Laurel May

“I liked the mix of reminders I got from authors like Mervyn Peake, L.Frank Baum and Ray Bradbury. I'm sure that every reader will find shades of other famous writers, including or excluding these three.” — Richard L. Bunning

“Eyelet and Urlick, the two main characters... There's so much to love! They are like salt and pepper: totally different, spicy, argumentative, and brilliantly smart.” — Rosemary Danielis

LUMIÈRE EXCERPT
“Wait!” I shout, surging forward, shouldering my way through the crowd. I fight my way to the front and pound on the doors of the carriage. “Please!” I shout. “I need to speak to you!” But the stranger doesn’t hear.

He brings his whip down hard over his horse’s back and the carriage leaps forward, parting the angry crowd like soil in a furrowed field. “Wait!” I hoist my skirts and chase after the carriage. “Please!” I shout. “Please! Wait!”

A second crack of the whip and the carriage moves faster. I race on, struggling to keep up to its side. If I lose sight of the carriage, I’ve lost everything. All hope of ever leading a normal life.

I can’t let that happen.

Won’t let that happen.

He will not take my father’s machine.

“Please, I beg you, stop the coach!” I lunge, throwing myself at the back of the coach, barely catching a toe on the edge of the running boards, embedding my nails into the carriage’s seams. The carriage bursts forward through the streets of Gears, the city fast becoming a memory.

“Stop!” I plead as my boot slips from the running boards. I swing out to one side and dangle by one arm.

The stranger at the mount turns his head. “What are you doing?” he shouts. “Get off!”

“Get off?”

I kick my way back up onto the platform.

“I said get off!” he shouts again.

“I won’t!” I say, hoisting, myself up higher onto the cab.

My foot slips again and I sink beneath the rooftop, striking my chin hard on the way down. Grasping at the coach’s seams I desperately try to hold on, the toes of my boots burrowing twisted trenches in the dirt road below. My heart lodges in my throat as I lose my grip and swing out again to the opposite side.

“Bloody Hell!” I hear the stranger curse.

His face appears over the top of the cab seconds later. His eyes are lit like flares. I hang by the tips of my fingers, shocked, staring up at him. I don’t know whether to scream or cry.


About author Jacqueline E. Garlick

I'm Jacqueline Garlick. Author of YA, New Adult, and Women's Fiction. I love strong heroines, despise whiny sidekicks, and adore a good story about a triumphant underdog. I love to read, write, paint (walls and paper) and plan cool writing events for cool writers. I have a love/hate relationship with chocolate, grammar, and technology. I prefer creating things to cleaning things, and baking to cooking. I believe laughter is a one-stop-shop solution to all that ails you and if that doesn’t work there’s always Ellen Degeneres. You will always find a purple wall (or two) in my house (perhaps even a door) and a hidden passageway that leads to a mystery room. (Okay, so you won’t find a hidden passageway but a girl can dream, can’t she?) Oh, and tea. There will always be tea. I love specialty teas...and collecting special teacups from which to drink them. (See website for collection.)

In my former life, I was a teacher (both grade school and college-don't ask) and more recently I've been a graduate of Ellen Hopkin’s Nevada Mentor Program and a student of James Scott Bell, Christopher Vogler and Don Maass. An excerpt from Lumière earned me the 2012 Don Maass Break Out Novel Intensive Scholarship.

Lumière—A Romantic Steampunk Fantasy—is my debut novel, Book One in my Young Adult The Illumination Paradox series. I am represented by Josh Adams of Adams Literary.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest


Scroll down for the giveaway!


BookBlast Giveaway

$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Ends 3/14/14

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organised by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.


Thanks for stopping by, and good luck! (: 





Thursday, 6 February 2014

Review: Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Released: September 4th 2012
Format: Hardcover (295 pages)
Source: My local library
Fierce, seductive mermaid Syrenka falls in love with Ezra, a young naturalist. When she abandons her life underwater for a chance at happiness on land, she is unaware that this decision comes with horrific and deadly consequences.

Almost one hundred forty years later, seventeen-year-old Hester meets a mysterious stranger named Ezra and feels overwhelmingly, inexplicably drawn to him. For generations, love has resulted in death for the women in her family. Is it an undiagnosed genetic defect . . . or a curse? With Ezra’s help, Hester investigates her family’s strange, sad history. The answers she seeks are waiting in the graveyard, the crypt, and at the bottom of the ocean—but powerful forces will do anything to keep her from uncovering her connection to Syrenka and to the tragedy of so long ago.

Monstrous Beauty is a dark, hauntingly heart-wrenching tale of love, mystery and sacrifice. Words might just fail me for this review.

Fama interweaves two stories in the plot of Monstrous Beauty – one being set in modern day with Hester on her quest to find out how to solve her family curse and the other being mermaid Syrenka's story, set from the 1600s onwards. I was hooked from the prologue. Fama's mermaids don't sing to lure men to their deaths, nor are they the gentle kind. The way they finish off their prey men is shocking, gruesome and completely awesome. That said, only Syrenka's story kept me reading beyond the first quarter of the novel as Hester's story hadn't quite picked up pace yet. Hester took a while to settle upon her goal and figure out how to solve her problem. Other than that, there were no other major problems with this book. Once I got past the first quarter, I read into the night because I just couldn't put it down!

In my opinion, Hester isn't really the main character, nor is Syrenka. You'll know when you read the novel – you'll be asking yourself whose story this is and when you find out, it's that OhIseeohmygodthattotallymakessense moment. Hester is smart and can think on her feet, but at the same time she's confused and hurt about falling in love. Why?

Because in Hester's family, you die if you get married and have kids. Hester lost her mother at birth because of that, and so did her mother's mother, and so on.

Hester's afraid of becoming close to anyone. She's afraid of falling in love, yet is also angry at why she can't allow herself to. The closest someone has gotten to her is her best friend, Peter. I thought it was a nice change from having a weak heroine who's so scared of falling in love that she doesn't want to do anything about it. Meanwhile, you have the enigmatic, immortal Syrenka who is looking for love and is not afraid of almost anything. They're a beautiful contrast to each other.

I've given much thought as to why Monstrous Beauty is so riveting. The plot could not have been pulled off if it weren't for Fama's diverse and believable characters. Each of their (back)stories is compelling and just simply out of this world. Linnie spooked me at first, but then gave me an incredibly heavy heart. Pastor McKee was likeable in the beginning, though I really pitied him towards the end of the novel. Eleanor Onstaan is so damn warped and freaked me out – her motivation is believable. And Ezra... Ezra is now on my list of book boyfriends. His 17th century-style manners and speech completely won me over, and Hester's description of him is so swoon-worthy.

Fama's clear writing brings across strong imagery such as Syrenka's mannerisms, not to mention how she looks like:
Ezra examined the sharp, bonyspined dorsal fin on [Syrenka's] neck and upper back, the small, razorsharp fins that followed the line of her thumb on the undersides of her wrists, and the webbing between her fingers.
There is also a noticeable fluidity in her writing style, which she switches from one time period to the next. It was comfortable to read, yet brought across suspense. History and mystery peeled off layer by layer in Syrenka's story while stakes became higher and higher in Hester's story. The two concurrent stories kept the tale fast-paced and full of excitement. The plot is just so brilliantly woven.

Fama never fails to surprise either; Monstrous Beauty is very unpredictable and I loved that very much. This novel drove me to the edge of my seat, gave me chills, shattered my heart and left me breathless. Monstrous Beauty is not just about mermaids. It's full of danger, love, folklore, history and magic – I seriously don't want to spoil it for you. You have to read this enthralling book!


For those of you who've read Monstrous Beauty, Fama has written a beautiful companion novella set in the same world. You can read it for free here.

Monstrous Beauty has definitely secured a spot in my top 10 books for 2014. I'll leave you with my favourite quote from this novel:
“You're not a dork, you're adorkable.” — Peter

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I am vastly over-educated. I attended the University of Chicago, where I received a BA in Biology with honors, an MBA, and a PhD in Economics and Finance. I should probably have majored in Literature instead.

My husband is John H. Cochrane, a talented economist whose books sell better than mine. We have four young-adult children, all artist-scholars, and boisterous family dinners with lots of vegetables and swearing. For fun I jog every day, swim in Lake Michigan (when it's not ice), and play tennis a few times a week. You run faster than I do, but I can beat you on the court.

Look for me on Twitter and Tumblr. I guarantee I'll say something embarrassing.

Check out her website here.

*** Elizabeth Fama is the author of Plus One (FSG, 2014), Monstrous Beauty (FSG, 2012), a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection and Odyssey Award honour winner, and Overboard (Cricket Books, 2002), an ALA Best Books for Young Adults. She is represented by Sara Crowe of Harvey Klinger, Inc. ***


Get your copy of Monstrous Beauty!