Blog Tour Stop: Review & Giveaway - The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard

The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard
Release Date: May 15, 2013

Allison O'Malley just graduated from college. Her life's plan is to get a job and take care of her schizophrenic mother. She doesn't have room for friends or even Ethan, who clearly wants more. When Allison's long-lost father shows up, he claims he can bring her mother back from the dark place her mind has sent her. He reveals legends of a race of people long forgotten, the Tuatha de Danaan, along with the truth about why he abandoned her mother.

Buy the Book: Amazon | Barnes and Noble 

I am a lover of all things Irish (my grandmother was Irish) and fantasy. So imagine how wonderful it was for me when I got a chance to review a book that combined the two.

The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard was a pretty quick read and a lovely story. From the sensible and determined Allison to the just as determined and love struck Ethan to the mysterious Liam to the fierce and conflicted Aodhan... the characters were diverse and interesting and enjoyable to read about.

Liam's sudden arrival in Allison's life kind of throws everything for a loop, even if not everyone in Allison's life knows just exactly who he is. He's come to with the intentions of pulling Allison's mother out of the trap her mind has had her in for as long as Allison can remember. He brings with him tales of places and things that Allison couldn't have dreamed of and a lot of "friends" that are more confusing for her than not. But she's willing to do anything to have her mother back. The mother that her grandparents told her about, bright and alive... and just... not the way she is now.

Ethan is in love with Allison. And as much as Allison tries to talk herself out of it, because she'll have no time for a boyfriend or love life when she's taking care of her mother, she's wanted him, too, for as long as she could remember. An actual relationship with Ethan is not something Allison can do. Right?

I do a fair job at Irish names if I do say so myself. Most of them anyway. But there were just some here that I couldn't figure out. Well, there were a lot, because ALL of them were Irish. There is a pronunciation guide in the back of the book which I wish I had seen before reading, because it would have made all of it so much easier. But that aside, it was a super easy story to get sucked in to. And like I said before, a very quick read. I thought it was over way too fast, I wanted to read more and more but alas.... the end.

It started off a bit slow, building the world and introducing the different characters, and then rocketed off before I knew what was happening. You know that point on a roller coaster where your stomach finally catches up with the rest of you after you've gone down a totally steep hill and you're just about to go up another one? Yeah, that's where I was. But I have to wait for the next book to go up the next hill. And I hate waiting!

I would definitely recommended this as a read to anyone ages 16 and up. There are a couple of scenes that were a little iffy so I wouldn't recommend it to anyone younger. So go and grab a copy and take a look for yourself!

About the Author:

Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her  obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.

Author Links: Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

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Movie Review - World War Z

My fiance sucked up his hatred of all the movies I pick to watch in theaters and treated me to World War Z yesterday. He was NOT a fan of Warm Bodies and to be honest, neither was I. I was disappointed in that one but in World War Z... I was not.

It was fantastic.

And Jerry wasn't disappointed either. He didn't LOVE love it, but he said it was MUCH better than the other movies I've picked. It was exciting and suspenseful and in 3D it was just awesome. Brad Pitt did much better than I'd expected too. I don't really care for Brad Pitt anymore, but I think he was stellar in this movie.

I like how the Zombies weren't all shambling, slow moving... it was a lot creepier and scarier because their movements were jerky and weird and they were super fast. It was like they had the rabies virus on crack. And there's a great twist at the end of the movie that'll keep you on the edge of your seat.

Now, I've never read the book by Max Brooks, and I'm glad that I haven't. I have a tendency to rip movies to shreds if I watch them after I've read the book. It annoys the heck out of whoever I'm there with and totally ruins the movie for them.

I definitely recommend this for everyone. Ok, well, maybe everyone over the age of 13 or 14. Whether you've read the book or not it's a great movie to see. Fans of all different kinds of zombies will enjoy this one I think. Go check it out!

Review - Flesh & Bone by Jonathan Maberry

Reeling from the tragic events of Dust & Decay, Benny Imura and his friends plunge deep into the zombie-infested wastelands of the great Rot & Ruin. Benny, Nix, Lilah and Chong journey through a fierce wilderness that was once America, searching for the jet they saw in the skies months ago. If that jet exists then humanity itself must have survived…somewhere. Finding it is their best hope for having a future and a life worth living.

But the Ruin is far more dangerous than any of them can imagine. They are hunted by fierce animals escaped from zoos and circuses. They must raid zombie-infested towns for food and medical supplies. They discover the very real truth in the old saying: In the Rot & Ruin…everything wants to kill you.

And what is happening to the zombies? Swarms of them are coming from the east, devouring everything in their paths. These zoms are different. Faster, smarter, infinitely more dangerous. Has the zombie plague mutated, or is there something far more sinister behind this new invasion of the living dead?

In Flesh & Bone, Benny Imura, Nix Riley, Lou Chong and Lilah the Lost Girl are pitted against dangers greater than anything they've ever faced. To survive, each of them must rise to become the warriors Tom trained them to be.

This review was originally posted over on Bookish by Evie. I thought it was time I put it up here too!

Book three in the Benny Imura series definitely did not disappoint. Flesh & Bone by Jonathan Maberry was an interesting story to read. With the addition of the Night Church with Saint John and Mother Rose to the discovery made by Benny and Nix that could possibly change the world as they know it, there wasn’t a lot of down time.

Benny, Nix, Chong, and Lilah are on their own now. The heart wrenching end to book two leaves them broken and grieving. Each in their own way. Benny’s way seems to scare him a bit and worry the others. The tension between him and Nix is incredibly thick and the relationship is strained to the point of faltering. But they hold on in any way they can.

The Night Church was an interesting addition. Listening to them speak (er… reading their conversations) made me incredibly uncomfortable and it all seemed SO over the top to me at first. But I realized that that was probably the point of it all. They were a weird cult with even weirder followers. And they were dangerous. Dangerous because they were following people with an evil agenda completely blindly and were willing to do whatever it took to stay in the good graces of Saint John and Mother Rose.

Captain Ledger was a good character. Kind of a light in the darkness of the Ruin. They’d run in to so much trouble already they really needed something to restore their faith in the world. Even if it was just a tiny bit. And I ended up really liking Riot. She was young, but she was strong. Reminded me a lot of Lilah.Their circumstances and the things that they’d been through were on complete opposite ends of the spectrum, but through those experiences they kind of both reached the same point if that makes sense.

There were some really unnerving twists in this story that change everything that Benny and Co. thought they knew about zombies and the ruin. To combat those though, they finally find answers to some of the questions they’ve been asking for a long time. Things make a lot more sense and I can’t wait to see where the new information takes the story.

Obviously if you’ve read the first two books in the series, you HAVE to read this one. It’s the kind of story that doesn’t give you enough time to really settle down. Just when you think you can breathe easy something else happens that puts you right back on the edge of your seat. I can’t wait for book four!

Review - The Year of the Great Seventh by Teresa Orts

Sophie has always felt out of step—an outsider, even amongst friends in her high school with all the hype about celebrity culture. Her life in L.A. seems to have been already written for her, but when her junior year starts, it all takes a drastic turn. When she crosses paths with the school's heartthrob, Nate Werner, they fall for each other in a way neither can understand. What they don’t know is that by giving in to their desires, they are unlocking an ancient Egyptian prophecy that threatens to return Earth to the dark ages.

To undo the curse, Nate and Sophie embark on an adventure that takes them across the country. But their quest is not only to save the world as they know it. It is also a fight for their very survival. Behind the scenes, there are those that are counting on them to fail.

Once I really got in to reading The Year of the Great Seventh by Teresa Orts, I didn't want to put it down. It's been a tough couple of months so I lost my reading gusto, but this book helped give it back to me.

It really starts out with a BANG. Sophie and her friends go to a party where Sophie runs in to the popular and absolutely gorgeous Nate who, surprisingly, seems interested in talking to her. But things take a turn for the worst when someone gets a little too close to Sophie (that's putting it nicely) and Nate completely flips out on him.

Just that one incident sets in motion an unstoppable force. Sophie can't help but fall for Nate and contrary to the society they live in and their social circles, he falls for her too it seems. But he's got a secret that he's kept from everyone but Sophie that could end up being the end of him... or her.

I didn't quite understand how Sophie's feelings for Nate went from seemingly non existant to "I can't keep myself away from him" so quickly, and there were some questions I had about the ending that I HOPE will be answered in the next book, but other than that this was a great story. There were some moments that totally creeped me out but I was rooting for the two of them the entire time. The relationship between them may not have really been explained at the start, but the devotion Sophie shows for Nate and the protectiveness he feels toward her just make me that much more invested in their story.

Sophie reminded me a little bit of myself and I think that's important in a story, being able to relate to the characters. She saw Nate, who was broken, and made up her mind to fix him despite all the odds stacked against them. Her fierce determination and hope, I'm sure, are part of what Nate ended up liking so much about her. She wanted to help him when no one else cared. Not even his own parents.

I would recommend this book to anyone 16 and up. There are a couple of scenes that were questionable for anyone younger than that, but 16 and up seems like a safe bet. It was phenomenal and action packed and kept me on the edge of my seating waiting to find out what happened next. I'm glad this is the first in a series because with books like these you always want to read more.

Follow Friday #49

Thanks to Parajunkee and Alison Can Read for hosting Feature and Follow Friday every week!

Todays question:

Q: Share your favorite literary quote! 

    .

 A: That's really a hard one. There are so many quotes that I love.

From Stardust by Neil Gaiman:

“A philosopher once asked, "Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them because we are human?"
Pointless, really..."Do the stars gaze back?" Now that's a question.”

From Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

“I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.”

From The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis

"All get what they want; they do not always like it." 

Those are just a few of mine. What about you guys?

Zombie Death Scene

I don't know how many of you have entered this (or knew about it)... but if you venture over to Jonathan Maberry's FACEBOOK page, you can enter his contest to have your very own death scene in his zombie novel Fall of Night (sequel to Dead of Night).

So if you haven't already, you should go check it out (rules and everything are explained over there, just scroll down a bit to get to the specific post). You have until 5pm EST (Eastern Standard Time) on June 15 to send in your zombie death!!

What are you waiting for?

Go!!

Movie Trailer - The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug

I was totally excited about this yesterday I literally sat watching my clock count down to the very last second.




What did you all think? I can't wait to see the movie!!