Quickie Review: Blind Spot by Laura Ellen

Blind Spot
Author: Laura Ellen
Release Date: October 23, 2012
Genre: YA fiction, mystery, thriller
Published by: Harcourt Children's Books

Summary from Goodreads:
There’s none so blind as they that won’t see.

Seventeen-year-old Tricia Farni’s body floated to the surface of Alaska’s Birch River six months after the night she disappeared. The night Roz Hart had a fight with her. The night Roz can’t remember. Roz, who struggles with macular degeneration, is used to assembling fragments to make sense of the world around her. But this time it’s her memory that needs piecing together—to clear her name . . . to find a murderer.

This unflinchingly emotional novel is written in the powerful first-person voice of a legally blind teen who just wants to be like everyone else.

My Thoughts:

Roz's character is unlike any other that I have ever read. She wants to be "normal" so badly and is beyond angry that the school has decided to put her in a class of kids that she deems definitely not "normal". Little does she know that these kids have a lot more to offer than she ever thought.

The mystery surrounding Tricia's murder is full of plot twists right up until the moment that I had that unmistakable "ah ha" moment. 

An interesting, captivating YA mystery. Totally worth the read.

Blog Tour: Betwixt by Melissa Pearl Review and Giveaway

I'd like to give a big shout out to AToMR Tours and Melissa Pearl for allowing me the honoring of being a part of the Betwixt tour today! To see more wonderful bloggers sharing their thoughts on Betwixt and offering chances to win your own copy of Betwixt go HERE.

Beautiful, wild-child Nicole Tepper is hit by a car and left for dead. But when she wakes the next morning, Nicole finds herself in bed without a scratch. Perhaps she was more intoxicated than usual, as her mother is giving her the silent treatment and her friends are ignoring her as well.

Things take a turn for the weird when Nicole soon discovers she is actually hovering between life and death. Her body is lying in the forest while her spirit is searching for anyone who can hear her. Unfortunately the only person who can is Dale Finnigan, the guy she publicly humiliated with a sharp-tongued insult that has left him branded.

Desperate, Nicole has no choice but to haunt Dale and convince the freaked-out senior to help her. Will he find her body before it's too late? Or will the guy who tried to kill her with his car, beat him there and finish her off before anyone finds out?

   

Links to find/buy book:

Goodreads  

Amazon

Barnes&Noble 

Smashwords

About the Author:

Melissa Pearl was born in Auckland, New Zealand, but has spent much of her life abroad, living in countries such as Jordan, Cyprus and Pakistan… not to mention a nine month road trip around North America with her husband. “Best. Year. Ever!!” She now lives in China with her husband and two sons. She is a trained elementary teacher, but writing is her passion. Since becoming a full-time mother she has had the opportunity to pursue this dream and her debut novel hit the internet in November, 2011. Since then she has produced three more books with her fifth novel, Betwixt, due out in November 2012.
Social Media links: Facebook, Website, & Twitter: @MelissaPearlG



a Rafflecopter giveaway

My Thoughts:
Why is it that so many of us intelligent, strong, girls fall for the bad boy. The jerk that would actually leave you in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night just because you don't feel like getting down and dirty. Girls, a little advice for you. That guy is NOT worth the gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe. OK, I feel better now that I got that off of my chest. Luckily Nicole is able to find out exactly what her boyfriend is like because of her "special" situation. In fact Nicole learns a lot about her so called friends and herself while she's "lost".

Pearl does a great job of writing a novel that's not just angst and romance. I loved that she was able to take a real life situation give it a paranormal spin and throw in enough mystery to keep you guessing for a while. I also really enjoyed how she doled out the characters pasts slowly and at just the right time. Here you are reading the story thinking you've figured out the characters and BAM you learn something that makes you feel a bit differently than you did before.

Betwixt is the kind of book that will make you think, make you smile, make you cry, and make you realize that when you're given a second chance, you better grab it and make it count!

Cover Feauture: Perception by Lee Strauss

Perception

Seventeen year old Zoe Vanderveen is a GAP—a genetically altered person. She lives in the security of a walled city on prime water-front property along side other equally beautiful people with extended life spans.

Her brother Liam is missing.

Noah Brody is a natural who lives on the outside. He leads protests against the GAPs and detests the widening chasm they’ve created between those who have and those who don’t.  He doesn’t like girls like Zoe and he has good reason not to like her specifically.

Zoe’s carefree life takes a traumatic turn.  She’s in trouble and it turns out that Noah, the last guy on earth she should trust, is the only one who can help her.

PERCEPTION is a ( SF/mystery/romance) Young Adult novel that takes place in the not too distant future in a world changed by climate extremes, natural disasters and impending wars, and where scientific breakthroughs cause class divisions—both financially and philosophically.  It explores the clash between faith and science and how differences can separate us as enemies or ally us together. And in some cases, even in the midst of betrayal and personal crisis, there’s room to fall in love.

This is the first book in a planned three book series. 

Author Bio

Lee Strauss writes historical and science fiction/romance for mature YA and adult readers. She also writes light and fun stuff under the name Elle Strauss. To find out more about Lee and her books check out her facebook page. To find out about new releases sign up for her newsletter at www.ellestraussbooks.com .

Amazon

Neurotic Thoughts on Townhouse

Townhouse
Author: Brian Rowe
Released: June 17, 2011
Genre: Horror
Pages: 243 according to my nook

Publisher: Self Published
A SIN: B0056P19DG
Target Age: Adult

Source: Review copy from the author for BLB Book Tours

Summary from Goodreads:

Sara Crimson isn't happy about moving into a shady apartment complex with a man she barely knows. But after discovering she's pregnant with her first child, she decides to try to make a relationship work with the baby daddy Max, an up-and-coming talent agent.

An aspiring novelist, Sara at first is elated with the additional free time she has to focus on her writing. But as the days turn to weeks, she starts to suspect that something peculiar is happening in the Executive Townhouses of North Hollywood, California. People start disappearing, strange noises echo down the corridor, and an old, creepy tenant finds his entertainment value in staring at her from afar.

But what Sara doesn't know is that the hidden horrors that lie inside the complex are far worse than anything her overactive imagination could have ever conceived...

                                                  I Really Like This Book!

If you like your books to get your heart racing and your adrenalin pumping, then you have to get your hands on Townhouse. Brian Rowe nailed the suspense, and the horror in this novel!

I haven't read a book like this in a long time, and now I remember why! I was really freaked out!! Since this is a horror/suspense novel, I'm pretty sure that is how I was suppose to feel. Luckily I don't have many neighbors or I'd be suspicious for months.

Brian's writing is engaging and quick to read, and by the end I was literally on the edge of my seat. Sara's character is very believable and real.  Her fears and thoughts seemed very genuine even if she was a bit judgmental, whiny and petty most of the time. By the end of the novel I had a bit more love for Sara. I enjoyed how the point of view occasionally switched to the other characters in the book so that I was able to get a broader perspective of the goings on in The Executive Townhouses. I would recommend this book to people that enjoy a good mystery, suspense and a bit of gore.

Townhouse is now available from amazon and  Barnes&Noble

 Make sure to check out the other stops on the Townhouse blog tour for more opinions, giveaways, and guest posts by Brian himself. 

8/8 – review @ Books Glorious Books
8/9 – review @ Fameless Ramblings
8/15 – review @ Workaday Reads
8/15 – giveaway @ Books Glorious Books
8/18 – giveaway @ Workaday Reads
8/20 – review @ My Neurotic Book Affair
8/21 – review @ Aobibliosphere
8/22 – excerpt @ Aobibliosphere
8/22 – review @ Just Another Book Addict
8/23 – excerpt @ My Neurotic Book Affair
8/23 – guest post @ Fameless Ramblings
8/23 – giveaway @ Just Another Book Addict
8/24 – review @ Imaginary Reads
8/27 – guest post @ Imaginary Reads

 

  As always thanks for stopping by!