1095 Days of Blogging! +Giveaway!

       That's right everybody, today marks the 1095th day of blogging on Reviews of YA Books. In other words, it's my 3 year blogoversary! I can't believe it's already been three years, not in the totally cliche way either, but the time has flown by fast.
       I didn't make a post for last years blogoversary, but for my 1 year, I posted stats and stuff. Mostly for myself, because I like looking back on how far I've come, so I'm going to do it again.

Chat With Me Thursdays

4

(I'm disappointed, but doing interviews can sometimes be very time consuming)

GFC followers

63

Bloglovin followers

28

Total comments

188

Page-views

15750

       Now for the part that I've been planning since August 2015, the giveaway!
       Wendi Wilson was kind enough to offer her 2 books Shadowed Strength and Shadowed Instincts to giveaway for this very occasion. I had the pleasure of reading Shadowed Strength and it is a great paranormal novel, so I very big thanks to Wendi for making this possible

Synopsis of Shadowed Strength

At 16, Melanie Johnson is a typical teenage girl. She has a BFF she adores, a mad crush on her good friend Jeremy, and an evil Barbie doll that destroys her self-esteem on a regular basis. One fateful night, after being humiliated at a party, Melanie is attacked and nearly raped as she walks home. A mysterious dog appears out of nowhere, just in the nick of time, saves her and then disappears just as quickly. No one saw him but her. And the man who tried to rape her. 
In the wake of the attack, Melanie tries to pull her life back together with the help of her friends. Just as things start to go her way, she starts to receive creepy notes from her attacker, promising to finish what he started. And to make things more complicated, Jeremy has a dark secret that Melanie's not sure she can accept. 
Can Melanie and Jeremy reveal the identity of her stalker before he attacks again? Will Jeremy's secret drive a wedge between them? And will the mysterious dog save her in the end, like he did in the beginning?

Synopsis of Shadowed Instincts

Melanie Johnson's world just got turned upside down. Things are changing for her, fast, and all she can do is hold on for the ride. 

After meeting her father and learning his family secret- one that her affects her directly- Melanie is whisked to the forests of Kentucky to meet his people to learn what she can from them. With her boyfriend Jeremy by her side, she is introduced to a whole new way of life- a glimpse into the life she could have had if circumstance hadn't gotten in the way. 

Before long, a threat emerges that could take away one of the most important things in her life- Jeremy. Someone wants him dead. Now they must work together to expose this threat and ensure his safety. 

Will Melanie and Jeremy discover the identity of his assailant before it's too late? And will Melanie be able to save Jeremy, like he's done for her so many times before? 

***This young adult paranormal romance is suggested for readers 16+ for language and mild sexual situations.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway


       I am so happy that I've continued blogging for 3 years, I hope I continue for a long time! Again, I would like to thank Wendi for supplying the books to giveaway, it was a pleasure working with you!

Did I Mention I Love You? Spotlight Post

I absolutely loved Did I Mention I Love You? by Estelle Maskame, so I thought I would post a spotlight on it to get all of you guys excited about it too! You can check out my review of DIMILY here

Did I Mention I Love You?

By Estelle Maskame

December 1, 2015; ISBN 9781492632153

Book Info:

Title: Did I Mention I Love You?

Author: Estelle Maskame

Release Date: December 1, 2015

Publishers: Sourcebooks Fire

Praise for Did I Mention I Love You?

“Readers will root for them, like they would with Edward and Bella—the mutual attraction and need for one another is palpable. It rings of passion, excitement, and first love.” –VOYA Magazine

“An edgy young adult romance with dark layers” –The Examiner

“A believable coming-of-age story and an unconventional romance, set against a present-day California summer... . The fallout of divorce, the insidiousness of substance abuse and family secrets, and especially the pangs of first love drive this emotionally resonant tale.” – Publishers Weekly

“Written in first person, Maskame’s trilogy opener is an excellent portrayal of a teenage girl’s life in the 21st century. Eden has to adjust to her blended family, try to feel pretty, be body conscious, and make friends, all while falling in love for the first time. She is someone all young people can relate to...Romance fans will be captivated by Eden and her journey to finding herself and true love.” –School Library Journal

Summary:

Love is everything but expected.

Eden Munro came to California for a summer of sun, sand, and celebrities- what better way to forget about the drama back home? Until she meets her new family of strangers; a dad she hasn’t seen in three years, a stepmonster, and three stepbrothers.

Eden gets her own room in her dad’s fancy house in Santa Monica. A room right next door to her oldest stepbrother. Tyler Bruce. Whom she cannot stand. He has angry blue eyes and an ego bigger than a Beverly Hills mansion. She’s never felt such intense dislike for someone. But the two are constantly thrown together as his group of friends pulls her into their world of rule-breaking, partying, and pier-hanging

And the more she tries to understand what makes Tyler burn hotter than the California sun, the more Eden finds herself falling for the one person she shouldn’t…

Did I Mention I Love You? is the addictive first book in Wattpad sensation Estelle Maskame’s DIMIY trilogy: three unforgettable summers of secrets, heartbreak, and forbidden romance.

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25883610-did-i-mention-i-love-you

Buy Links:

Amazon- http://ow.ly/SAmvg

Apple- http://ow.ly/SAvv7

Barnes&Noble- http://ow.ly/SAmJH 

BooksAMillion- http://ow.ly/SAmR5  

!ndigo- http://ow.ly/SAnIE

Indiebound- http://ow.ly/SAnRt

About the Author:

Estelle Maskame started writing at the age of thirteen and completed the Did I Mention I Love You?  trilogy when she was sixteen. She has built an extensive fan-base for her writing by serializing her work on Wattpad. Fitting book writing between work, Estelle has amassed followers from all over the world. She lives in Scotland. For more visitestellemaskame.com

Social Media Links:

http://books.sourcebooks.com/dimily/

https://twitter.com/EstelleMaskame

Did I Mention I Love You? Excerpt

I can almost see the road through the gaps in the fence by the side of the house, and I squint through. There’s music playing. More like blaring. I can hear it over the crappy music that’s already bouncing around the back yard, and as a sleek white car speeds up to the edge of the sidewalk and skids against the curb, I grimace in disgust. The music cuts off the second the engine is killed.

“What are you looking at?” Rachael asks, but I’m too busy staring to even attempt to answer.

The car door swings open roughly, and I’m surprised it doesn’t fall straight off its hinges. It’s difficult to see clearly through the fence, but a tall guy gets out and slams the door shut just as aggressively as he opened it. He hesitates for a moment, stares at the house, and then runs a hand through his hair. Whoever he is, he looks su-per depressed. Like he’s just lost all his life savings or his dog just died. And then he heads straight for the gate.

“Who the hell is this jackass?” I mutter to Rachael as the figure nears us.

But before either of us can say anything more, Jackass decides to hit the gate open with a fist, drawing the at-tention of everyone around us. It’s like he wants everyone to hate him. I figure he’s probably that one neighbor that everyone despises, and he’s only here in a fit of rage because he wasn’t invited to the lamest barbecue get-together that’s ever been hosted.

“Sorry I’m late,” Jackass comments sarcastically. And loudly too, with a smirk on his lips. His eyes flash green as emeralds. “Did I miss anything besides the slaughtering of animals?” He throws up the infamous mid-dle finger to, from what I can see, the barbecue. “I hope you guys enjoyed the cow you just ate.” And then he laughs. He laughs as though everyone’s expressions of disgust are the most entertaining thing he’s seen all year.

“More beer?” I hear my dad call out to the silent crowd, and as they chuckle and return to their conversations, Jackass heads through the patio doors. He slams them shut so hard I can almost see the glass tremble.

I’m stunned. I have no idea what just happened or who that was or why he’s just entered the house. When I realize I’m slightly slack-jawed, I close my mouth and turn to Rachael.

She bites her lip and pushes her sunglasses down over her eyes. “I’m guessing you haven’t met your step-brother yet.”

Enter to Win a Copy of DIMILY & an advance copy of DIMINY. This giveaway is active December 1st-December 31^st. Open to US & Canadian residents only:

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Coming Soon!

Did I Mention I Need You (March 2016) & Did I Mention I Miss You (June 2016)

 Book Info:

Title: Did I Mention I Need You?

Author: Estelle Maskame

Release Date: March 1, 2016

Publishers: Sourcebooks Fire

Eden and Tyler have desperately tried to ignore their love for each other for the sake of their family. But they can’t seem to stay apart for long, especially once Tyler invites Eden to spend the summer with him in New York.

Away from their life in California and caught up in the excitement of the city, their summer fling turns into something much more serious. Unable to deny their feelings, Tyler and Eden must face reality. But how will their family react when they confess their romance? And is their relationship strong enough to survive the fallout?

Pre-Order Links:

Amazon- http://ow.ly/VkkwY

Apple- http://ow.ly/VkkSO

Barnes&Noble-  http://ow.ly/Vkldc

BooksAMillion- http://ow.ly/Vklph

!ndigo- http://ow.ly/VklIC 

Indiebound- http://ow.ly/VklTu

 Book Info:

Title: Did I Mention I Miss You?

Author: Estelle Maskame

Release Date: June 7, 2016

Publishers: Sourcebooks Fire

Eden’s on her way back to Santa Monica for the summer, and she hasn’t seen Tyler since the devastating fallout of their forbidden relationship. Eden claims to have moved on—but Tyler wants to rekindle the flame.

He convinces Eden to visit his new home in Portland, Oregon, where he has set up a center for troubled teens. Eden’s proud of what he’s built, but the last time they were together, it nearly destroyed Eden and their family. Then a tragedy draws them together, and Eden must search her heart and decide if Tyler is worth the risk once and for all.

Firsts by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn Mini Review

Introduction
       
       Mercedes "Mercy" Ayres helps virgins. Meaning, she lets them get their awkward clumsy first times over with so they can give their significant other something she never had: A good first time. Mercy works with a system that impeccably makes so that she is always in control; and it stays that way. At least for a little while.

Thoughts

       Saying I wasn't interested in Firsts would be an understatement. I considered just not finishing it, which I hardly ever do. The plot line was predictable, as almost nobody is naive enough to believe that when Mercy's system starts to fail, everybody is going to end up okay and nobody's feelings would be hurt. Frankly, I was very surprised at Mercy in general, especially because of the fact that she actually thought she was helping people. She spent a lot of time believing that what she was doing was for the greater good, and I can kind of understand why, seeing as she had a horrible first time, but still. So all in all, I did not enjoy Firsts. I would recommended this book mostly to teen girls who are looking for something quick to read, there's always a chance that other people will enjoy the book more than I did!

       

Did I Mention I Love you? by Estelle Maskame

Introduction

       Eden isn't the happiest person regarding the fact that she has to spend the summer with her father, the same one that walked out on her and her mom three years ago. For the record, she doesn't plan on spending too much time with her father, she plans on working on her tan in the LA sun and doing all the tourist like things the Golden State has to offer. What she doesn't plan on, is having 3 new step brothers. Jamie, Chase and the oldest brother, Tyler. Another thing she really doesn't plan on is making friends and breaking rules, but the last thing I think she ever thought would happen was that she would end up falling for Tyler, the one person she knows she can never go for.

Cover

       The cover is cute, standard for a contemporary romance.

Eden

       Eden wasn't really anything super specatacular. She wasn't a bad character and I didn't dislike her, she just doesn't have anything about her that stands out to me.

Tyler

       Tyler was a cool character. I kind of expected the bomb that dropped near the end when it is revealed as to why he has his guard up all the time and hides behind his infamous distractions, but I did enjoy reading about the roller coaster that is his life.

Love story

       I'm not going to say anything about the love that Tyler and Eden have for each other because I don't really think it would mean anything. The point of the story is basically that the love they have is forbidden regardless of the fact that they aren't related. All that aside, I think it was a well written love story.

Ending

       I do, however, have a problem with the ending. I find the author kind of copped out of really dealing with everything that should have been dealt with, but from what I understand, Did I Mention I Love you is part of a trilogy so Maskame has plenty of time to make up for it.

Conclusion

       This book was pretty good. I think once I really sat down, I read it in about 2 days. It's a good book if you're looking for a more serious contemporary romance, and I am interested enough in the characters and plot to read the second book when I can.

Happy Halloween + Monthly Recap

       Halloween is my favourite time of the year! I was always the kid that took Halloween very seriously. If everybody in my group of friends wanted to go as angels? I would be a bloody, dead, decaying angel. I don't do cute Halloween. What are your Halloween plans?

       I didn't post nearly as much as I wanted to this month. Even the things I did post, I'm not happy with the quality of them. I also only read one book this month *disappointed sigh* I hope November will be better. I do have a review or two lined up so you can at least expect those. I've been trying very hard since about May of this year to always post at least once a month. I'm always disappointed in myself when I don't manage one single post a month. I think that'll probably be my new years revolution. To make sure I stay active in the blogging world.

       Anyway, I'm welcoming November with open arms! (Mostly because my birthday is in November and after November is December which means all that Christmas cheer!)

Spectacle by S.J Pierce Book Tour Stop (Spotlight)

The book tour for Spectacle by S.J Pierce stops here today!(Through Xpresso Book Tours) I have a excerpt and general information all ready to go!

Spectacle by S.J. Pierce
Publication date: July 13th 2015
Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult

Synopsis:

Hunger Games meets Avatar in this spellbinding new Young Adult, Science-Fiction novel by bestselling author Susan James Pierce.
Two hundred years after the Great Disaster, the day earthquakes ravaged Earth’s landscapes, humanity has finally regrouped and is working toward a better future. But in New America – one of three remaining landmasses – the threat of overpopulation makes a better future seem bleaker by the year.
Mira (Mirabella) Foster and her parents are citizens of New America, and with the threat of starvation and disease looming on the horizon, a new discovery threatens to push everyone to the brink of chaos: blue markings develop on people’s skin. Markings that allow them to camouflage their skin, but also make them feared, and eventually, targets of violence.
Mira’s dad is one of them.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25365630-spectacle?ac=1

Purchase:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Spectacle-S-J-Pierce-ebook/dp/B00YLUZO3S/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

B&N - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spectacle-sj-pierce/1122059507?ean=2940151949255&isbn=2940151949255
Kobo - https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/spectacle-6
Apple - https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/spectacle/id1001695474?mt=11

Excerpt

Following the scent of cheese toast and eggs, I stop short when I see my mom standing in the kitchen doorway, her hands fidgeting with the frayed hem of her apron, a tight smile on her face. I don’t like the way she looks at me – worried and afraid and about to cry all at the same time. “Mirabella, dear,” she says, almost whimpers. “Daddy and I need to talk to you.”

Heat crawls over my skin, flushing my cheeks and leaving gooseflesh on my arms. Dread squeezes my lungs. “Okay,” I manage, but it takes me a minute to remember how to walk. Mom doesn’t move out of my way.

I notice the radio isn’t on again. Dad usually listens to it for his morning news.

She kneels to look me at me on my level, and I know now something really bad must have happened… or is happening. Yet again, the rings around the moon were right.

“Everything’s okay,” she lies, reading my worried expression, “But I want to warn you about your father before you see him.”

My eyebrows draw together. Warn me?

I hear dad shifting in his chair, and he grunts nervously. My chest clenches tighter. All I want is to see him. To know what’s going on. I can’t fathom what she would have to warn me about.

“His skin is… different than before.”

“Different?”

“Yes, baby,” she soothes. “And whatever you do, please don’t scream. You know how thin these walls are.”I muster a nod.

“Okay,” she says, clasping my hand and straightening, “It’s time.”

She leads me into the kitchen, my heart racing, eyes snapping right to my father. He’s sitting with his face behind his hands, his elbows resting against the tabletop. The skin on his arms and hands look the same to me – smooth and the color of coffee with milk. Still normal. I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Is she looking?” he asks through his hands.

I answer for her. “Yes, daddy.”

He lets out a long slow breath – a brooding sigh.

“Show her, Grant,” mom pleads.

Moments pass. He sighs again and slowly moves his hands away. Behind them, blue marks, starting at the corners of his eyes, branch out in a rough, jagged pattern - like webs of blood vessels, but more defined - over his cheekbones and stopping along his jawline. Smaller patches curl around his temples. It almost looks like a butterfly, almost beautiful, like these odd markings are meant to be there. Like someone had painted them for fun. I would assume this is all a joke had my mom not been acting so weird.

I look up to her questioningly. Why would this have made me scream?

Her hand meets her chest, and I can tell she’s relieved I didn’t freak out, but not all the concern is gone from her eyes. At least she’s smiling normally now.

“So you aren’t afraid?” she asks.

“Why would I be?”

Her lips press tight. She throws a nervous glance at my father.

“Because these are permanent,” he says. “And they’ll get worse.”

What I Tell Myself by Amber Knight

       Quick update: Hey! The new feature I wrote about before will most likely be out this Sunday. Things have been busy, but I'm finally having a quiet weekend. Anyway, just a quick review today!

       Book received from author in exchange for honest review

Published September 29 2015

       Meet Annabella and Cameron. One is noisy, one is not. One loves asking questions about things that the other wants to keep secret. And one can’t help but fall for the other. 

When a new girl shows up at school, Cameron avoids her like he does everyone else. But the new girl has other plans. Plans that involve finding out who the real Cameron White is. 

       I don't often read a ton of short stories (this book is only 35 pages) but I'm glad I read this one. Amber Knight's writing style reminds me slightly of Ellen Hopkins, In the way that the sentences are short and wouldn't really be considered finished. Personally, I like this style, but it's hit and miss. I really wish this was longer, I would love to read and become more attached to the characters.