Interview with Cate Tiernan/Giveaway!

Today we sit down with Cate Tiernan for interview to discuss her newest book, Darkness Falls.

AND, because Cate is so awesome one lucky winner will get their own copy of Darkness Falls!

But first let me introduce you to the book...

Darkness Falls

By Cate Tiernan

Published January 2nd 2012 by Poppy

Synopsis borrowed from Goodreads:

Nastasya has lived for hundreds of years, but for some reason, life never seems to get any better. She left her spoiled, rich girl life to find peace at River's Edge, a safe haven for wayward immortals. There, she learned to embrace River's Edge, despite some drama involving the sexy Reyn, who she wants but won't allow herself to have. But just as she's getting comfortable, her family's ties to dark magick force her to leave.

She falls back into her old, hard partying ways, but will her decision lead her into the hands of a dark immortal? Or will it be her first step to embracing the darkness within her?

You can check out my review HERE!

Now let's give a warm welcome to Cate Tiernan!!

Darkfallen: I have to say that I loved the premise for this series. How did you come up with the idea of "rehab" for immortals?

Cate: I was thinking about how immortals would live, and what it would be like psychologically and emotionally to live such long lives. And I thought that it was likely that some of them would not age gracefully. I love the idea of an older immortal reaching out to others to help them with the challenges of a super-long life.

Darkfallen: When I first starting reading Immortal Beloved I had a hard time following Nas's train of thought. She seemed to be a little all over the place, but by book two she seemed to pull it together more. Was this your intent? Kind of a way to show how she was getting better?

Cate:Yes, exactly. At the beginning of book one, she can't sit still, can't focus, has a constant level of anxiety and a fierce need to protect herself at all times. As she becomes more healthy and more stable, this all gets better. By the end of book three, she's still herself, but a much calmer, more focused self who can follow through on things.

Darkfallen: I loved, LOVED Reyn's character. I wish I could have had more of him and Nas's relationship throughout the first two books and I am super excited to see where they go in the final book. Can you tell us...will we get more swoonworthiness in the upcoming book?

Cate: Oh yes. There will be swooning. Nastasya and Reyn take their relationship further in the second book, and in the third book, everything comes together. So to speak. Of course, it's not always smooth sailing . . . speaks fly, both good and bad.

Darkfallen: I have to say that I am intrigued by the "mental institution" for immortals up in Canada. Have you thought about maybe writing a novella, or even and entirely new series, based there? I wouldn't mind seeing how a few of those people turned out in the end. *winks*

Cate: That's a fun idea. For me, Immortal Beloved was about taking someone who seemed to have no redeemable qualities, and then show how even she can be redeemed. It would be interesting to explore that some more.

Darkfallen: River seems to be such a rounded, yet mysterious character. I love the way she meshes with Nas and the rest of the gang. Did you ever find it difficult to keep her so grounded? I think at times I would have just yelled at Nas if I was her. Lol.

Cate: I know--sometimes Nas seems to need a swift kick in the butt. But River is so much older and has so much more life experience. She's had a much longer time to work on her own abilities and her own feelings. I just created the ideal mother-figure--someone who sets boundaries and demands you live up to them, but offers constant unconditional love and support. I wish I had a River! I wish I was River!

Thank you for the interview--I appreciate it!

~Cate~

And now one lucky winner will get a finished copy of Darkness Falls!!
All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter form below. This giveaway is being shipped from the publisher and is open to US residents only.
 

Leap Into Indie!

<a href="http://paranormalwastelands.blogspot.com/2011/12/leap-into-indie.html" title="Paranormal Wastelands"><img src="http://i1207.photobucket.com/albums/bb479/Paranormalwasteland/leapnow21-1.jpg"alt ="Paranormal Wastelands" title="Paranormal Wastelands"/></a><br />

Welcome to Leap Into Idie!

What is Leap Into Indie, you ask?

Simple! It's a giveaway hop dedicated to indie authors and their fabulous books:) Through blogging we meet some pretty awesome indie authors that we might not have met otherwise, so lets share the love out in the book blogging world by hosting a giveaway dedicated just to them!

Now I know you have other questions like...What's a giveaway hop? And How do I sign up? Well first let us introduce you to our top five indie finds this year....and then we will move on to the details!

Paranormal Wastelands' Top 5 Indie Books Silas

Vampire Wake

A Whisper to a Scream

Fate Fixed

Miss World

Now back to the details...

What is a giveaway hop?

A giveaway hop is an event hosted where bloggers across the blogg-o-sphere link up and each host a giveaway on their site. There is a linky list so hoppers can easily hop from one giveaway to the next! It helps generate a lot of blog traffic for your blog and helps you meet some pretty awesome bloggers:)

How do you sign up?

That's easy peasy! All you have to do to sign up and join in the fun is fill out the linky form below. Please make sure that you type your web address and email correctly.

Rules shmules...

1.)This event is hosted by Paranormal Wastelands & Jen from Can't Put It Down. You can sign up on either blog but please only sign up once. Once you sign up grad the badge above and place it in your sidebar so other people can sign up!

2.)Each blog is responsible for providing their own giveaway for this event. The giveaway must be either an indie book, or a gift card to a book store to buy indie books.

3.) Each blogger can set their own rules for entering their giveaway. (Example: International, US Only, Must follow on GFC, Follow on Twitter, Leave a comment, ect.) Just remember to keep it simply. No Jumping through hoops for the intial entry.

4.) Each post should have the Leap Into Indie logo at the top of their post and the linky list for the rest of the giveaways at the bottom. This allows for hoppers to easily hop from one blog to the next.

That's it! Easy Peasy;-)

Now fill out the linky here to sign up! Just Click the botton:)

Wintertown by Stephen Emond: Review

Wintertown
By Stephen Edmond
Published Dec 5th 2011 by Little Brown Books
Pick up your copy at B&N, Amazon, or your local indie today!

Synopsis borrowed from Goodreads:

Every winter, straight-laced, Ivy League bound Evan looks forward to a visit from Lucy, a childhood pal who moved away after her parent's divorce. But when Lucy arrives this year, she's changed. The former "girl next door" now has chopped dyed black hair, a nose stud, and a scowl. But Evan knows that somewhere beneath the Goth, "Old Lucy" still exists, and he's determined to find her... even if it means pissing her off.


Garden State meets Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist in this funny and poignant illustrated novel about opposites who fall in love.

Darkfallen's thoughts:

Ok so this is more like 2.5 stars so I just slapped a two on it.

Anyways...

This book just didn't turn out quite how I expected it. I mean when I read the premise I was so excited to be offered and ARC from Little Brown Books for review. Straight laced boy meets up with an old childhood friend that happens to be heavy on the black hair dye, and and she's even got a nose ring? Yes Please!

Unfortunately that's about where it stopped for me. I really wanted to like this book. So much so that I stuck by it and read it until the very end hoping that there would be this big Ta Da moment, but that never came. I think the worst part for me was that the story itself wasn't bad...it had potential to be really good, but it was the writing style. It just felt bland and choppy and slow and dry.

Did you notice how many times I use AND in that sentence? Yea that's how this book it written. That alone drove me bananas. The run-on sentences was a big part of the bland. I kept imagining a very monotone voice the entire time. Still I couldn't help but keep reading, waiting for it to all turn around...and while it did get slightly better there towards the end it flat lined again. It had a very Dear John kind of ending which drove me nuts.

So sadly I have to say this book wasn't for me:(

Lymi...



Teauser Tuesday: Child of War/Giveaway!

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday!

This meme is sponsored by MizB over at Should Be Reading.

(wanna learn more about how you too can join in and play along? click here)

This weeks teaser is from....

"Closing the door, he looked over at her and didn't have to ask what she was thinking.  'Memories are good, aren't they?'

Alena turned around to put her hands on his chest and smiled up at him coyly.  'The first night we shared this bed was magick.'

'What about the nights after?'

'All of them were magickal,' Alena cooed and buried her face between his pecs.  'They still are.'"

Can you say yum?!

We though you might, and since Lisa Darling is so nice....

One lucky winner will get to know these two a little better, and win the first book in this series, The Heart of War! (eBook) All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter form below!

Now come on...Tease us!

Vampire Hunt by Tim O'Rourke: Review/Giveaway!

Vampire Hunt (Kiera Hudson book 3)
By Tim O'Rourke
Published Oct. 26th 2011
Pick up your copy at Amazon for just 99 cents today!
Synopsis borrowed from Goodreads:

In search of Kayla and on the run, Kiera and her friends make a race against time across the Cumbria Mountains. With the vampires predicting their every move, the trust amongst Kiera and her friends starts to fade.

From the desolate monastery set high between the mountains, the mysterious lake and the caves beneath the fountain, Kiera must discover the connection between the vampires and her mother, Isidor and Kayla, and resolve her inner feelings for Potter and Luke.

Kiera herself has started to change and this frightens her. So turning to her friends for help, she realises that it is only her mother who can provide the truth. But Kiera has other questions that she needs to have answered. Why did Isidor murder an innocent girl? Who is the person that Murphy has been meeting in secret? But above all, why have they put their lives and trust in the hands of a serial killer?

‘Vampire Hunt’ Kiera Hudson Series Book Three.

‘Vampire Breed’ Kiera Hudson Book Four coming Christmas 2011!

A Greta & Darkfallen review:

Darkfallen: OH...

                     MY...

                    GOD...

*drops mic and walks off stage*

Greta: Really? That's it? That's all you're gonna say? Well I can do better than that!
Holy Batburgers with Extra Cheese, Batman!!

That's the way he's going to end it? Are you kidding me? With a cliffy of so and so doing something something? Fo shizzle? Now, that's just plain evil!!

Darkfallen: Oh and that's soooooo much better? Ok so maybe I'll leave you with a little more than that, but I assure when you read the last page of this book that is exactly how you'll feel.

Kiera and the gang are on the run now after the event at Hallowed Manner. Trying to find Kayla while the world is being taking over my vampyrus that all want to kill you is no easy feat. Picking up where Vampire Wake left off Tim takes you on a journey only for you to end up in a place you never thought existed. The whole time Kiera is starting to change. Her vampyrus side growing stronger by the day, and the thought of growing wings completely freaks her out. Luckily for her she isn't given much time to think about those things. Unfortunately that's because all of her time is spent in one near death experience after another!

I mean seriously this girl just can't catch a break! Note to self if you ever meet a girl named Kiera RUN as fast as you can in the other direction if you want to live! lol

Greta: In this one, Kiera is now learning what it means to be a half-breed. I'm very curious what will happen in the next book since she's matured a bit in this one.

Although.... COME ON HOBBIT!! Are you kidding me? I do not want a love triangle!! And Potter creeps me out!!! LOLZ! That's right boys and girls!! THere is more love triangle magic in this one. YOu know how she kissed a Potter and liked it in Vampire Wake? Wait till you hear what she does in this one. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! Let's just say that my eyes,.... they burned!!!

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm all for a live triangle with a TAY TAY and a RobBurger but uggs... I don't like Potter's mouth and I totally don't find him hot or suck facable ;)

Darkfallen: You wouldn't know suck facable if it smacked you on the ass and called you Greta. Long live Team Potter!!!!!

Now lets talk relationships shall we? Remember in New Moon when Jake made his move and suddenly there was a bunch of teeny boppers, and a few moms NO I was NOT one of them. walking around wearing shirts that said "Team Jacob!" or "Team Edward!" on them? And then when Fallen by Lauren Kate came and everyone was "Team Daniel" or "Team Cam"? Do you remember those days? Well let me tell you that I ALWAYS root for the home team. For me the answer was always Edward for Bella, and Daniel for Luce, and in every story where there has been a love triangle my love for the original guy always won out.

Until now...That's right folks. Forget Luke I'm in the stands chanting Potter Potter Potter! Something has happened to me. Or maybe it's not me. Maybe Tim O'Rourhe is some sort of pseudo-psych genius with words. Because I didn't even know it was happening. I hated Potter. I despised him. For somewhere over 600 pages, and almost two whole books, I was madly and irrevocably in love with Luke Bishop. Then in those last few chapters of book two something happened. I was in love with Potter before I even realized what was happening to me. It was to late. There was no going back by the time I woke for the spell that Tim put on me. So much so that I found myself here in Vampire Hunt reading about Kiera in the arms of Luke and all the while thinking Damn it Potter kiss her. KISS HER! Oh and when he did...*swoon* So I stand before you to say I'm officially rooting for the away team on this one. Go Team Potter!
Greta: An-y-ways....moving on shall we? I must admit that I really did miss KAYLA in this one. I rather enjoyed her in VAMPIRE WAKE and I think that's what really MADE that book for me. But Isidor was a good replacement for her. I really enjoyed hearing his back-story and there's actually a secret present that I got to discover in this book. Read it and tell me if you can find it ;) LOLZ! It is most awesome and made me go super sonic squee!

The histories of a certain race was described (if I tell you it will be a spoiler) and I must admit that it is the most imaginative back story that I have ever heard. I loved it! Well done, Hobbit!

And this place that they go to at the very end is out of this world!! Very very clever!!
Darkfallen: Now on to something else that doesn't usually happen to me and therefore I feel the need to share with you. The ending of this book. The evil cliffy will make you gasp out loud, knots form in your stomach, only to turn the page and read "The End." I am the queen of the evil cliffy. I am the girl that will write you a story and then then last words will be something like "She stopped, toes curled over the edge of the building, thinking this is it. She can hear them calling her name in the back round. Their shoes slapping against the tar roof as they run to stop her. Turning over her shoulder she catches his eye. She jumped....THE END and now your left waiting for book two to find out if the chic died or not. Yes I am that evil! Well Tim I come before you, to bow beneath you. I here by declare you my King of the evil cliffy's. The reader in me hates you for making me wait to know what happens next. The writer in me has never been more happy.

This again is another great addition to the series, and you would be a fool to not take this thrill inducing, action packed, at time terrifying ride! And remember these vampires don't sparkle...

Greta: All in all... A most fantastic story! So run along and pick up your own copy. And at 99 cents each this is a series you can't afford NOT to buy;)

Greta gives it...

And Darkfallen gives it...

Now on to how you can get your hands on not only Vampire Hunt, but the books 1, 2, 3, AND 4!

That's right, one lucky winner will recieve their choice of Kindle version or codes to Smashwords to get Vampire Shift, Vampire Wake, & Vampire Hunt....THEN when Vampire Breed comes out in December the winner will also get a copy of  that! So not only will you get all three books in the series, you will also get the fourth book as soon as it comes out. How cool is that?! All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter.

This contest is open Internationally!

Until next time...

Rot & Ruin (Benny Imura #1): Reviewed by AH

Title: Rot & Ruin (Benny Imura #1)
Author: Jonathan Maberry
Published: 2011
Guest Blogger: AH from Badass Book Reviews
Synopsis from Goodreads


In the zombie-infested, post-apocalyptic America where Benny Imura lives, every teenager must find a job by the time they turn fifteen or get their rations cut in half. Benny doesn't want to apprentice as a zombie hunter with his boring older brother Tom, but he has no choice. He expects a tedious job whacking zoms for cash, but what he gets is a vocation that will teach him what it means to be human.

Is the zombie apocalypse close at hand?

Are zombies the new vampire? Both are undead. Both bite. Unfortunately, zombies have gotten the short end of the stick. Zombies are not glamorous. They are not sexy or sparkly either. Zombies are just ….well ewww.

I must preface this review with the fact that I usually don’t like zombies. I don’t go out of my way to read about zombies, or watch *shudder* zombie movies. I get squeamish at the sight of blood and gore.

Rot & Ruin is a great read. Aimed at the young adult market, I can certainly see my 14 year old son getting a kick out of this book. I loved its underlying theme: zombies are just like people except they’re dead (and they may want to bite you). I despaired at the world of Rot & Ruin, a world of abandoned technology and zombies.

Rot & Ruin is the story of Benny Imura and his legendary brother Tommy. Benny barely remembers First Night, the night the zombies took over. Benny is just your average 15 year old boy who must find a job in order to keep receiving his food rations. The job market in the zombie post apocalypse sucks, probably worse than today’s job market. Benny tries some truly horrid jobs, but never lasts. He finally takes the last possible job – his brother’s apprentice. Tommy is a heroic zombie hunter and well known throughout their world. I really liked how Benny’s view of Tommy changes significantly during the book and how Tommy allows this change of attitude little by little.

I loved how Benny is portrayed as just a regular teenager, with teenage angst and issues. Benny’s friends are also very entertaining. I loved Morgie and Chong and enjoyed reading about their job hunting woes. Nix was another interesting character and I loved how all the boys wanted to date her. I was intrigued by the Lost Girl Lilah. For a girl who grew up on her own, she was fierce, lethal and very resourceful. The bad guys in this book are especially heinous. Charlie Pink-Eye and Motor City Hammer are very unscrupulous zombie hunters.

I really enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to the next installment of Benny and Tommy Imura’s story.

Wanna join the Zompacolypse hop? Want all the Wastelanders to trick or treat at your blog this Halloween? Then why don't you join the most awesome party around?! Details are Here but beware of the zombies!! Remember.... we warned ya -- muhahahahas!