Blog Tour & Book Sketch: But Then I Came Back by Estelle Laure

BUT THEN I CAME BACK
By: Estelle Laure
Published By: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers
Release Date: April 4, 2017
Series: None
Pages: 288
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Reading Level: Young Adult
Source: Publisher
Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads Summary: Eden Jones, a 17-year-old girl, feels lost after surviving a near fatal accident. Unable to connect with her family and friends, Eden forms an unlikely relationship with Joe, a boy who comes to the hospital to visit Jasmine, a friend who may soon be gone forever. Eden is the only person who can get through to Jasmine, but is she brave enough to face a world that’s bigger and more magical than she ever would have allowed?



First Thought After Finishing: As Tolkien wrote, not all who wander are lost…

After you’ve been in a coma, can life ever be the same? Is there life after death, and how can we know? These are some of the questions that Eden struggles with in the new novel by Estelle Laure. But Then I Came Back explores themes as well as self-discovery and new love. This novel is a companion story to This Raging Light, but it can be read as a standalone novel.

"I know better now than to believe in real endings. Things only change. They become something else. We adapt. And sometimes we grow wings."

After an accident, Eden slips into a coma. When she finally wakes up again, she starts to realize that she cannot just slip comfortably back into her life from before. Not only has her body changed, keeping her from doing ballet that has always been her life, but also she cannot quite shake images and dreams from her time in the coma. She feels a mysterious connection to another coma patient whom she dubs Vasquez, and because of her, she comes to know Joe, the one solid and steady visitor. As Eden finds herself drawing closer to Joe, the mystery surrounding Vasquez intensifies, and the lines between the living and the dead become more blurred. In Eden’s new life, who will she be and what will she do?

From the beginning, this book drew me in because of Estelle Laure’s writing style. The opening pages are slightly disjunct and a bit confusing, matching Eden’s state of mind. As she becomes stronger and more self-aware, the writing changes, telling a story woven with beautiful poetry and quotes from Shakespeare and other famous authors. I also loved the connection between worlds that is explored here. Eden refers to the “in-between,” and she seems to be commented there because of Vasquez. I would have loved to see this explored more—I find that concept fascinating.

"This is between me and whatever mighty forces are at work. I spread my arms wide to the sky, and I let go. I am not afraid anymore."

Beyond the mysteries of life and death, Eden struggles to regain her life as she deals with physical restrictions and a missing chunk of time. I enjoyed watching her relationship with Joe progress; it was just the right mix of awkward and sweet. Joe is a character who could have a story in his own right, and it always makes me happy to think that the characters weren’t designed for each other but instead fit together so well because of who they are separately. Joe gives Eden moments of happiness during her recovery, and these prompted Eden to do the hard work of deciding who she wanted to be in her future.

Most Memorable Aspect: The imagery with the black flowers was very vivid, and I keep seeing the scenes in my mind.






~ ~ ~ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ~ ~ ~


Estelle Laure is a Vonnegut worshipper who believes in love and magic and the power of facing hard truths. She has a BA in Theater Arts from New Mexico State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and thinks everyone should have to wait tables or work in a kitchen at least once in their lives. She lives in Taos, New Mexico with her children.

Find Her Online: Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram

~ SEE THE FULL TOUR SCHEDULE ~
Week One:
3/27/2017 - Literary Dust - Interview
3/28/2017 - The Best Books Ever - Review
3/29/2017 - Novel Novice - Guest Post
3/30/2017 - Portrait of a Book - Review
3/31/2017 - Literary Meanderings - Excerpt

Week Two:
4/3/2017 - YA Book Madness - Review
4/4/2017 - Don't Judge, Read - Review
4/5/2017 - Tales of the Ravenous Reader - Interview
4/6/2017 - Just Commonly - Review
4/7/2017 - Wandering Bark Books - Excerpt


~ DON'T MISS THIS GIVEAWAY! ~
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Teaser Tuesday (107)

I'm very excited to be one of the many blogs participating in Teaser Tuesdays! TT is a weekly meme hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat. To participate:

* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
(Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"Flint taps against the granite in me, and before I can tamp it down, there is a spark."


Taken from pg. 107 of BUT THEN I CAME BACK
by Estelle Laure
Please share your teasers - post them or link to your blog!

"Waiting on" Wednesday

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's selection is:

BLOOD ROSE REBELLION
By: Rosalyn Eves
Published By: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Preorder the Book: Amazon

Goodreads Summary: The thrilling first book in a YA fantasy trilogy for fans of Red Queen. In a world where social prestige derives from a trifecta of blood, money, and magic, one girl has the ability to break the spell that holds the social order in place.

Sixteen-year-old Anna Arden is barred from society by a defect of blood. Though her family is part of the Luminate, powerful users of magic, she is Barren, unable to perform the simplest spells. Anna would do anything to belong. But her fate takes another course when, after inadvertently breaking her sister’s debutante spell—an important chance for a highborn young woman to show her prowess with magic—Anna finds herself exiled to her family’s once powerful but now crumbling native Hungary.

Her life might well be over.

In Hungary, Anna discovers that nothing is quite as it seems. Not the people around her, from her aloof cousin Noémi to the fierce and handsome Romani Gábor. Not the society she’s known all her life, for discontent with the Luminate is sweeping the land. And not her lack of magic. Isolated from the only world she cares about, Anna still can’t seem to stop herself from breaking spells.

As rebellion spreads across the region, Anna’s unique ability becomes the catalyst everyone is seeking. In the company of nobles, revolutionaries, and Romanies, Anna must choose: deny her unique power and cling to the life she’s always wanted, or embrace her ability and change that world forever.

Welcome to Weep.



Why it's Wanted:
How gorgeous is this cover? I love fantasy, and this sounds like a great novel with historical elements as well. Plus, Rosalyn is a local author, so support is a given!

"Waiting on" Wednesday

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's selection is:

STRANGE THE DREAMER
By: Laini Taylor
Published By: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Preorder the Book: Amazon

Goodreads Summary: A new epic fantasy by National Book Award finalist and New York Times bestselling author Laini Taylor of the Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy.

The dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around— and Lazlo Strange, war orphan and junior librarian, has always feared that his dream chose poorly. Since he was five years old he's been obsessed with the mythic lost city of Weep, but it would take someone bolder than he to cross half the world in search of it. Then a stunning opportunity presents itself, in the person of a hero called the Godslayer and a band of legendary warriors, and he has to seize his chance to lose his dream forever.

What happened in Weep two hundred years ago to cut it off from the rest of the world? What exactly did the Godslayer slay that went by the name of god? And what is the mysterious problem he now seeks help in solving?

The answers await in Weep, but so do more mysteries—including the blue-skinned goddess who appears in Lazlo's dreams. How did he dream her before he knew she existed? and if all the gods are dead, why does she seem so real?

In this sweeping and breathtaking new novel by National Book Award finalist Laini Taylor, author of the New York Times bestselling Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy, the shadow of the past is as real as the ghosts who haunt the citadel of murdered gods. Fall into a mythical world of dread and wonder, moths and nightmares, love and carnage.

Welcome to Weep.



Why it's Wanted:
It's finally a new book from Laini Taylor! Yes, the brilliant mind that brought us the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy! And that COVER! This is at the TOP of my most-wanted list. Need I say any more?

Teaser Tuesday (106)

I'm very excited to be one of the many blogs participating in Teaser Tuesdays! TT is a weekly meme hosted by MizB at Books and a Beat. To participate:

* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
(Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"We kissed again. And again after that.

The stars were all around us, spinning, whirling, carrying me off with them into the sky."


Taken from pg. 65 of OUR OWN PRIVATE UNIVERSE
by Robin Talley
Please share your teasers - post them or link to your blog!

Cover Reveal: The Girl Who Could See by Kara Swanson

I'm very excited to share the cover of Kara Swanson's new book with you! The Girl Who Could See is about a girl who's always been told that she is crazy because of what she can see. I love books that deal with what could be mental illness or could be a supernatural awareness, and I can't wait to read this one! And now, without further ado, I present THE GIRL WHO COULD SEE by Kara Swanson!



All her life Fern has been told she is blind to reality—but what if she is the only one who can truly see?

Fern Johnson is crazy. At least, that’s what the doctors have claimed since her childhood. Now nineteen, and one step away from a psych ward, Fern struggles to survive in bustling Los Angeles. Desperate to appear “normal,” she represses the young man flickering at the edge of her awareness—a blond warrior only she can see.

Tristan was Fern’s childhood imaginary hero, saving her from monsters under her bed and outside her walls. As she grew up and his secret world continued to bleed into hers, however, it only caused catastrophe. But, when the city is rocked by the unexplainable, Fern is forced to consider the possibility that this young man isn’t a hallucination after all—and that the creature who decimated his world may be coming for hers.


~EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT: CHAPTER 1~

Present Time

On television, they never tell you how cold it is.

They might show you the dimly lit room or the hard, uninviting chairs—stark reminders that you have no power here. They may depict the lonesome table separating you from the elderly agent with the stone-grey eyes. But those cop shows never depict what a chilly affair an FBI interrogation truly is. If their aim is to make this process as intimidating as possible—it’s working.

I wrap my hands around bare shoulders, fingertips far colder than the skin exposed by my red tank top. Brilliant move, Fern. Wear a scarf, but forget your jacket. Stifling a shudder, I try to meet the sharp gaze of Agent Barstow standing rigidly across from me.

“I don’t know where you’re from, miss Johnson—but in LA, state-of-the-art buildings don’t just crumble.” His voice is gravelly, matching the jagged lines of his dark skin and weathered face. “Federal buildings, no less. There one minute and the next…destroyed.”

His tone chills me even more, and I tug nervously on my scarf. His arms slowly unwind from his chest as he takes a deliberate two steps toward me. “We’ve had everyone on the disaster—CIA, local police, firemen…heck, we even called NASA. No one can find a plausible reason why a skyscraper, in excellent repair, would collapse like that. No one, that is, except you.”

I fight the urge to bolt for the door as he leans down, palms flat on the table, so close I can make out the creases on his dark suit. “You warned us of an attack in that area two weeks ago. How did you know?”

I suck in a deep breath as his voice lowers, dark fists tightening on the edge of the table. “Are you involved with a terrorist organization?”

I almost laugh at his words, at how they couldn’t be farther from the truth. I’m here to save LA, not destroy it. To save everyone. And I don’t have much time—none of us do. If I can’t gain this man’s trust, a shattered building is nothing compared to what will come next.

“No, sir.” I shove my shaking hands beneath my legs as I glimpse a pair of lucid blue eyes over the agent’s shoulder. They shouldn’t be there—and I know not to stare. But those eyes that only I can see are the reason I warned the FBI in the first place. Their owner the reason I’m even sitting in this room. Licking my lips, I keep my attention on Barstow. I’ve wanted this for years. Someone to listen. Really listen. And it’s the FBI, no less. Be careful here.

When I open my mouth, the words are calm and steady. I hope they’re convincing—they have to be convincing. “I knew about the incident, Agent Barstow, because my friend warned me.” Throat suddenly dry, I look away. “My imaginary friend."


~ABOUT KARA SWANSON~

As the daughter of missionaries, KARA SWANSON spent sixteen years of her young life in the jungles of Papua New Guinea. Able to relate with characters dropped suddenly into a unique new world, she quickly fell in love with the speculative genre and was soon penning stories herself.

At seventeen, she independently published a fantasy novel, Pearl of Merlydia. She has since published many articles, including one in the Encounter magazine. Kara received the Mount Hermon Most Promising Teen Writer Award in 2015. You can find her on Facebook as Kara Swanson, Author, or attempting to be artistic over on Instagram (@karaswanson_author). When she’s not creating new stories and placing characters in peril, she’s probably binge-watching Marvel movies, playing with her huskies, reading till two in the morning or experimenting with a dairy-free mocha Frappuccino (skills, I’m telling you).

Find Kara Online:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads


~GIVEAWAY~

a Rafflecopter giveaway

"Waiting on" Wednesday

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's selection is:

A PSALM FOR LOST GIRLS
By: Katie Bayerl
Published By: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 14, 2017
Preorder the Book: Amazon

Goodreads Summary: Tess da Costa is a saint — a hand-to-god, miracle-producing saint. At least that's what the people in her hometown of New Avon, Massachusetts, seem to believe. And when Tess suddenly and tragically passes away, her small city begins feverishly petitioning the Pope to make Tess's sainthood official. Tess's mother is ecstatic over the fervor, while her sister Callie, the one who knew Tess best, is disgusted - overcome with the feeling that her sister is being stolen from her all over again.

The fervor for Tess's sainthood only grows when Ana Langone, a local girl who's been missing for six months, is found alive at the foot of one of Tess's shrines. It's the final straw for Callie.

With the help of Tess's secret boyfriend Danny, Callie's determined to prove that Tess was something far more important than a saint; she was her sister, her best friend and a girl in love with a boy. But Callie's investigation uncovers much more than she bargained for: a hidden diary, old family secrets, and even the disturbing truth behind Ana's kidnapping.



Why it's Wanted:
The premise of this book is different from anything I've read before. Plus, I'm intrigued by the mystery surrounding the supposed saint. It feels Da Vinci Code-esque. I want to know the truth!

Book Sketch: Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor

DAYS OF BLOOD AND STARLIGHT
By: Laini Taylor
Published By: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: Nov. 6, 2012
Series: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2
Pages: 517
Genre: Fantasy
Reading Level: Young Adult
Source: Bought
Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads Summary: Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war.

This is not that world.

Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.

In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.

While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For hope.

But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?



First Thought After Finishing: Oh, Karou. Don’t give up hope. Don’t give up on your dream…

I read Daughter of Smoke and Bone years ago, but the story never completely left my mind. Karou and Akiva’s characters always haunted me, and I finally decided that I couldn’t want any longer to see how everything played out for them. Even though I still have the third book to read, I am so glad that I finally took the plunge and read this sequel.

“Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a new way of living—one without massacres and torn throats and bonfires of the fallen, without revenants or bastard armies or children ripped from their mothers’ arms to take their turn in the killing and dying…this was not that world.”

Days of Blood and Starlight begins soon after the events of the first book, but the tone is quiet different. The world of Eretz is a darker place, filled with bloodshed among both the seraphim and the chimera. Karou and Akiva both must come into their own during this book. Each time the point of view shifted, I longed for the one left behind.

“I am priestess of a sandcastle in a land of dust and starlight.”

Once again, Laini Taylor gives us a glimpse into a sweeping, expansive world, showing where humans intersect with magical creatures. The images she creates made me believe that I was in the desert and able to glance up at a sky of endless stars. I loved the fact that we got to dive deeper into the world of the seraphim and learn more about the different tribes of chimaera. In addition, Zuzanna and Mik are back with Karou, and we see a lot more of Akiva with Liraz and Hazael. The banter between these characters kept the book from being too somber, and even though there was an undercurrent of tension due to the war, there were definitely moments of laughing out loud.

As for the main characters, they are definitely changed in this installment of the story. So often I just wanted to hug them both and tell them that it would be all right. However, “all right” can’t really be a thing when the world is about to be at war and two soulmates are separated in class Romeo and Juliet style. I don’t want to say too much for people who haven’t read this yet (and what are you waiting for?), but the new aspects of magic, the challenges faced, and the truths revealed make for one compelling story.

Most Memorable Aspect: I loved the quotes interspersed between sections. But really, I love the story and the characters. They haven’t left me in years.

"Waiting on" Wednesday

"Waiting on" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's selection is:

PROOF OF LIES
By: Diana Rodriguez Wallach
Published By: Entangled Teen
Release Date: March 7, 2017
Preorder the Book: Amazon

Goodreads Summary: Some secrets are best kept hidden…

Anastasia Phoenix has always been the odd girl out, whether moving from city to international city with her scientist parents or being the black belt who speaks four languages.

And most definitely as the orphan whose sister is missing, presumed dead.

She’s the only one who believes Keira is still alive, and when new evidence surfaces, Anastasia sets out to follow the trail—and lands in the middle of a massive conspiracy. Now she isn’t sure who she can trust. At her side is Marcus, the bad boy with a sexy accent who’s as secretive as she is. He may have followed her to Rome to help, but something about him seems too good to be true.

Nothing is as it appears, and when everything she’s ever known is revealed to be a lie, Anastasia has to believe in one impossibility.

She will find her sister.



Why it's Wanted:
Foreign cities? Conspiracy theories? Bad boys with sexy accents? Yes please! This sounds like a thrilling mystery!