From Me to You ... Video, Photography and Book Reviews

Saturday, August 8, 2015

Blog Tour - The Heartbreakers by Ali Novak | Character Interview, Spreading the Word & Giftcard with a YA romance books bundle

Today I'm turning my blog over to Ali Novak, who helped me with the character interview I had with one of the main characters from her novel "The Heartbreakers," which happens to be the FIRST BOOK in her The Heartbreak Chronicles!!

ALSO -- Be sure to check out Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post to be able to sign up for this blog stop's GIVEAWAY!! [Blog Tour & Giveaway will run from July 27 - August 30, 2015]

My Q&A with a character from "The Heartbreakers" :

Character's Name : Oliver Perry
Character's Age : 18
Character's Appearance : Light-brown, wavy hair. Dark blue eyes. Tall, lean.

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

Sure. I was born in Portland, Oregon and raised by my grandparents. I’m the lead singer and songwriter for the Heartbreakers, and we’re currently getting ready to release our next studio album called Light Years Away. I started writing and making music with my best friend JJ in junior high, and we formed our first band called Infinity and Beyond freshman year of high school.

What is your favorite article of clothing?

You can’t go wrong with a good beanie, but I never take off my Grandpa’s dog tags—they’re very important to me.

What is your favorite book?

Hands down, "Moonraker" by Ian Fleming. It’s my favorite James Bond story.

What is your favorite food?

Pickle rollups. You can’t judge until you’ve tried one.

Do you have a favorite place to go and/or vacation spot?

I’ve toured all over the world and been to some pretty amazing places, but when I have time off, my favorite place to go is home. Nothing beats spending time with friends and family.

Is there anything that you ever regret for having done? If so, can you tell us about it?

Yeah. It’s still kinda hard for me to talk about, but this past year I turned my back on my bandmates. I was so worried about keeping our record label happy that I didn’t realize how unhappy my best friends were. I hurt my girlfriend, Stella, in the process too, and it took a while to gain everyone’s trust back.

What is one thing you wouldn't be caught dead doing?

Stella loves the The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. She tries to get me to watch it all the time, but yeah—that’s never going to happen.

What is one of the most romantic things you’ve done or have had done to you?

Okay, so Stella is obsessed with this famous photographer called Bianca Bridge. For our first date, I tracked down an art gallery that had an original Bianca Bridge print and took her there to see it. I also love cooking dinner for her, and I’ve written a song for her as well.

Have you ever gone out in public with your shirt on backwards, or your slippers on, and when realizing it, just said screw it?

Well, I’ve gone commando before. Does that count?

Do you have any summer plans that you'd like to share with us?

Mainly I’ll be busy with the rest of the band promoting Light Years Away, but any free time I have will be spent in New York with Stella. She goes to school there at SVA.

"The Heartbreakers"
[The Heartbreak Chronicles, Book 1] by Ali Novak
Author's Book Description :

"When I met Oliver Perry, I had no clue he was the lead singer for The Heartbreakers. And he had no idea that I was the only girl in the world who hated his music."

My Life with the Walter Boys

The Heartbreakers

My Book Review :

4 out of 5 stars

[READ MY FULL REVIEW & THREE TEASERS]

This book is available to order on :

Amazon (e-Book) | Amazon (Paperback) | Barnes and Noble (Paperback & e-Book) | IndieBound (Paperback) | Kobo (e-Book)

** Be sure to add it to your TBR pile on Goodreads! **

THE HEARTBREAKERS by Ali Novak -- Read my #bookreview here:...
Posted by From Me to You - Video, Photography, & Book Reviews on Monday, July 27, 2015

About the Author :

Ali Novak writes contemporary young adult romance and is a recent graduate of the University of Madison Wisconsin's creative writing program. She wrote her first full length novel, "My Life with the Walter Boys," at the age of fifteen. Since posting the story online, it has received more than 33 million reads and is now published by Sourcebooks Fire.

My Previous Review(s) for this Author : The Heartbreakers

Giveaways!! :

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Soo .... COMMENT on this post!! And you could WIN!! =0)

Find Ali Novak :

Second Sentence Saturday: Not So New In Town

SECOND SENTENCE SATURDAY is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Jess of From Me to You ... Video, Photography, & Book Reviews. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

Grab the novel/novella your currently reading or previously read

Open to the first page of Chapter 1 or its Prologue

Share the SECOND sentence from that page

Share the novel/novella's title & its author, so that other participants can add that novel to their TBR Lists if they want

MY Second Sentence Saturday :

"Not So New In Town" [Harmony Homecomings Series, Book 2] by Michele Summers

She had always hated being called "Loco Lucy," but right about now, she thought she might be a little nuts.

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT to share either the link to your own SECOND SENTENCE SATURDAY post or share the sentence in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog). Thank You!

Friday, August 7, 2015

Blog Tour - Crushed by Kasi Blake | Character Interview, Spreading the Word & a Clean Teen Mystery Box Giveaway

Today I'm turning my blog over to Kasi Blake, who has a character interview for us with one of the main characters from her novel "Crushed," which happens to be the FIRST BOOK in her The Witch-Game Series!!

ALSO -- Be sure to check out Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post to be able to sign up for this blog stop's GIVEAWAY!! [Blog Tour & Giveaway will run from August 4 - 20, 2015]

A Q&A with a character from "Crushed" :

Welcome to Dish with Maxie. Today, I am interviewing Sol Moreno High student Kristen Noah. I don’t usually invite teenagers onto my show, but Kristen has a juicy secret. Don’t change that channel. You won’t want to miss a second of this.

Maxie : Kristen, is it true you’re a witch?
Kristen : I... what? Who told you that? Was it my sister? Was it Brittany? Cause she makes up stories all the time, so you can’t believe anything she says.

Maxie : Okay, let’s talk about your sisters then. Tell us about them. You’re a triplet, right?
Kristen : Yes. There are three of us. Brittany is always in trouble, and Cyndi is always trying to fix it.

Maxie : Isn’t it true that Cyndi uses magic to fix things? Aren’t all three of you witches?
Kristen : Don’t be silly. There’s no such thing as witches.

Maxie : Not what I heard. In fact, a little bird told me they saw you and Brittany fighting at school. Weird things were happening like stuff flying through the air, shattered windshields in the parking lot, and people popping out of sight. How do you explain that?
Kristen : Overactive imaginations.

Maxie : Tell me about your new boyfriend. Zach, is it?
Kristen : Zach has a bad reputation, but he’s always there when I need him.

Maxie : Is it true you needed him when a building collapsed on you? Did he teleport you out of there?
Kristen :What? Where are you getting this information?

Maxie : Is it true Zach has dark powers and can change into an animal?
Kristen : No! (rips off microphone) This interview is over.

Maxie : (with a smile) Are there witches in Sol Moreno? You be the judge.

"Crushed"
[The Witch-Game Series, Book 1] by Kasi Blake (aka K. C. Blake)
Author's Book Description :

The Noah girls have beauty, powers, and brains.

They use all three to play their games.

They blow the dust,

the boys are crushed,

and no one is ever the same.

Each year the Noah girls play a secret game— Crushed. The rules are simple.

My Book Review :

2 out of 5 stars

Her nemesis, Gina, calls her out in front of everyone.
Her sister bets her to “crush” Zach, one of the hottest/scariest boys in school, which leads to another rivalry unintended between her and her sister.
Now she has to deal with a Zach, who isn’t acting like a “crushed guy” should and instead of falling for her, he seems to hate her even more. Except for those rare occasions when he’s charming her…

[READ MY FULL REVIEW & THREE TEASERS]

CRUSHED by Kasi "K.C." Blake's Author Page -- Read my #bookreview here:...
Posted by From Me to You - Video, Photography, & Book Reviews on Sunday, August 2, 2015

About the Author :

When Kasi Blake was in the third grade, she found out that a good story could get her out of trouble. Okay, some people call it a lie, but she didn't see anything wrong with using every skill available to her to avoid being grounded. Over the years, that didn't change. Her stories just grew more elaborate. When she was 12, she began to write them down, starting with a six-page tale about a boy from the wrong side of the tracks and the good girl that secretly wanted him. Kasi went on to write for Harlequin for a few years. Then, she published a vampire series on her own, and now she is publishing with Clean Teen.

Get ready for an exciting series on witches using their powers to play dangerous games at school. The first is "Crushed." You can find her on Twitter @kasiblake, on FB, and she has a website under her name.

Kasi lives on a farm in the Midwest with tons of animals including cows, ducks, chickens, a dog, and cats.

My Previous Review(s) for this Author : Crushed

My Previous Mention(s) of this Author's Books/Characters : Blog Tour - Crushed by Kasi Blake | Spreading the Word & a Clean Teen Mystery Box Giveaway

Giveaways!! :

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Soo .... COMMENT on this post!! And you could WIN!! =0)

ALSO -- Be sure to follow the tour around the other blog sites!

Find Kasi Blake :

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Feasted On: Quick & Furry Series, Book 6

Format: Kindle Edition | File Size: 598 KB | Release Date: August 4, 2015 | Publisher: Self-Published | Obtained: Amazon.com

"Hunting a Mate" [Quick & Furry Series, Book 6] by Celia Kyle (aka Lauren Creed) & Mina Carter

Authors' Book Description : The M & M Mating Agency: We deal in matings, not chocolate.

Does love at first sniff exist? Archer and Paige seem to think so. Well, more like Archer says yes and Paige says no. But don’t worry, they’ll work it out in the bedroom.

Wereferret Paige Baxter has an itty-bitty shifting problem. Mainly she spontaneously shifts, and that’s a problem. Her answer is to remain calm, practice yoga, and stay away from anything that could scare her… or surprise her… or arouse her. Of course, the super-hottie hunk of werecougar she runs into at the M & M Mating Agency ticks off all three “must never happen at once” boxes.

Paige does what any embarrassed, self-respecting woman would do in that situation—she runs. Unfortunately—or fortunately—cats love a good hunt.

My Book Review : 4 out of 5 stars! This novel doesn’t really deal with anyone trying to interrupt a mating, it’s about a couple who find each other and in unusual circumstances that leaves Paige (a ferret shifter) shifting during high stress situations. And what is a more high stress situation than Paige finding her mate, Archer (a cougar shifter), while dealing with her demanding mother too…

This fast-paced paranormal erotic romance was soo sweet and fun that I could not get enough of this charming duo! Paige and Archer were a great couple! Archer is supportive of Paige’s “incidents” while Paige was adorable as she grew into her confidence around him. I especially like the way Archer deals with both of their relatives. *hehee*

I recommend this novel to those who are fans of the authors and/or interspecies paranormal romances!

Purchase This Book and/or The Other Books From It's Series Here : Kobo (e-Book) : Quick and Furry Collection | Kobo (e-Book) : Chasing Tail (Book 1) | Kobo (e-Book) : Tailing Her (Book 2) | Kobo (e-Book) : On Her Tail (Book 3) | Kobo (e-Book) : Heads or Tails (Book 4) | Kobo (e-Book) : Wanting a Mate (Book 5) | Amazon.com (e-Book) : Quick and Furry Collection | Amazon.com (Paperback) : Chasing Tail (Book 1) | Amazon.com (Paperback) : Tailing Her (Book 2) | Amazon.com (Paperback) : On Her Tail (Book 3) | Amazon.com (Paperback) : Heads or Tails (Book 4) | Amazon.com (Paperback) : Wanting a Mate (Book 5)

Kobo (e-Book) : Hunting a Mate (Book 6)

My Previous Review(s) for Celia Kyle & Mina Carter -- Together : Dragon Her Feet

My Previous Review(s) for Celia Kyle : Deuces Wild | Whitney | No Ifs, Ands, or Bears About It | Rebecca | Lorelei | Roaring for Him

My Previous Mention(s) of Celia Kyle & Mina Carter's Books/Characters : Second Sentence Saturday: Dragon Her Feet

My Previous Mention(s) of Celia Kyle's Books/Characters : Best Book Couples -- Happy Valentine's Day 2014 | Best Book Couples -- Happy Valentine's Day 2015

Authors' Novel Extras :

Hunting a Mate by Author Celia Kyle (moi) and Mina Carter Author available on 8/4. Keep an eye out for pre-order links!
Posted by Author Celia Kyle on Monday, July 27, 2015

Does love at first sniff exist? Quick & Furry #6: Hunting a Mate is available now! Amazon - http://bookbit.ly/hamzon...
Posted by Author Celia Kyle on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Authors' Series Extras : Quick & Furry Series - Overview

Book Teaser(s) :

Great. Just…amazing.
One owner of the M & M Mating Agency laughed at her while the other called her cute as if she were a puppy. Well, she wasn’t. She was a wereferret. Maybe her kind wasn’t the biggest or the baddest, but they made up for it with other fine qualities like…she couldn’t think of one right that second. But they had them! I am ferret. Hear me roar! ~ within Chapter 1

HUNTING A MATE by Author Celia Kyle & Mina Carter Author -- Read my #bookreview here:...
Posted by From Me to You - Video, Photography, & Book Reviews on Thursday, August 6, 2015

“Children, the both of you. Why did I try so hard to make you like each other? Why?”
“Because you’re a caring and loving sister. Archer and I think you were adopted.” Mel replied, full of sincerity.
He, of course, glared at her. “I wasn’t serious about that.”
Mel coughed. “Liar.” ~ within Chapter 7

For more information on this book, series, and/or any other books by Celia & Mina, then please check out Celia's website and/or Mina's website.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Blog Tour - Broken Love by Kelly Elliott | Special Announcement / Spreading the Word

Today I'm turning my blog over to Kelly Elliott author of "Broken Love," which happens to be the FOURTH BOOK in her Broken Series!!

When Kelly Elliott started to write "Broken Love" she decided what better way to write this fan wanted book than to let readers help write it!!

SO -- Every 3-4 weeks Kelly will write a few chapters and at the end there will be a few questions that the readers can vote on to decide which direction this novella will go.

"Broken Love"
[Broken Series, Book 4] by Kelly Elliott
Author's Book Description :

Synopsis coming soon.

You Pick The STORY!!! :

Prologue – Ava :

Nothing about my relationship with Johnny was normal. We met and fell in love immediately. He asked me to marry him on our two-month anniversary and I said yes. My mother cried, and my father lectured me for three hours straight. He kept repeating, “This isn’t normal, Ava.”

What was normal anyway?

According to my father, knowing someone at least six months before agreeing to marry him or her was normal. I, of course, disagreed and let my whirlwind relationship with Johnny totally blind me of what I couldn’t see before my very eyes.

As I stood in front of four different cakes, I couldn’t help but glance around the bakery. Johnny and I were having a small wedding, held at his parent’s country club in Austin. His mother had insisted we not elope, which was exactly what we had both wanted to do.

Turning my attention to Johnny, I watched as he talked to the young redhead who had been helping us.

“So, have you narrowed it down?” she asked as she smiled brightly at Johnny and barely acknowledged I was there.

With a shrug of his shoulder, Johnny turned to me and said, “Ava, could I possibly talk to you outside for a moment?”

I gave Johnny a slight smile as I nodded my head. “Of course.”

Johnny placed his hand on my lower back and guided me out of the bakery. I frowned as I thought how his hand on my lower back should cause my stomach to dip. At least that is how it is for the girls in the romance books I read. The touch of his hand on my body should ignite my body in flames.

Ha! I’d never experienced those feelings before in my entire life. There was a reason it was called fiction.

As we stepped out of the bakery, I flashed him a smile as I decided maybe what we needed was some afternoon delight. Placing my hand on his chest, I licked my lips and purred, “I know something else I’d rather be tasting.”

Johnny looked away as he stared down the street with an empty look in his eyes. “Ava, I need to talk to you.”

My smile faded as I instantly gnawed on my lower lip. His voice was serious and I had a terrible feeling he was about to say something that was going to prove my father right.

“Okay, right now or after we pick out a cake?”

Johnny looked into my eyes and shook his head. “I need to be honest with you, Ava.”

My heart sank as I held my breath involuntarily before finding the air to speak again. “Honesty is always nice.”

As he closed his eyes I fought to hold back the tears I knew were about to fall.

“There’s someone else. I didn’t mean for it to happen, but it did. She's amazing and she makes me feel alive.”

Anger quickly raced through my body as I took a step back. “Is that so? Kind of like how I made you feel alive? Or does she make you feel alive in some other kind of way?”

Shaking his head, Johnny let out a sigh. “I’ve known Lisa almost my whole life. We ran into each other about a month ago and well, things just sparked between us.”

I placed my hand over my stomach and let out a moan. “Oh. My. God. You’ve been cheating on me?”

“No! Well, I mean it wasn’t like I did it on purpose. We fell in love, Ava and I can’t deny how I feel about her. I’ve only slept with her twice.”

My mouth dropped open as I stared at him with a blank expression. “Are you kidding me right now? Are you really that big of a dick that you would actually tell me you’ve only slept with her twice? Is that some how supposed to make me feel better you dickhead?”

Johnny glanced around as he took me by the arm and started walking toward his Audi. I hated that car. I hated him. I hated that my father had been right.

“I would have thought you would have been happy that I told you this before we got married.”

Holy freaking hell.

What did I ever see in this jerk?

Letting out a chuckle, I nodded. “No, you’re right. Better you told me before I went off and married you and God forbid had a child with you.”

“Ava, you have to admit this was all rushed. We got caught up in the whole romance side of things and lost focus on reality.”

“Reality? You think I’ve lost focus on reality? You know what’s real, Johnny?”

He lifted his hand and gently placed it on the side of my face. His thumb moved ever so slow as his eyes softened. “The pain you’re feeling right now, Ava. I know this hurts, but baby you’re going to find someone else.”

He did not. No. He. Did. Not.

“You got one part of that right. Pain. But it’s not the pain I’m feeling, it’s the pain you're about to feel you asshole.”

I lifted my knee and hit him right in the balls. I hadn’t seen a guy go down on one knee since I accidentally hit Walker in the balls with a golf club.

Johnny doubled over as he cried out in pain.

“Have a happy life with, Lisa.”

Turning on my heels, I walked away quickly. Not sure whether I should cry or scream, I pulled out my phone and dialed the one person I knew would understand.

My mother.

“Hey baby girl. How did the cake tasting go? Did you pick out a cake?”

Pressing my lips together, I tried to figure out how to deliver the blow. “No. But I did kick Johnny in the balls out on the sidewalk in front of the bakery.”

Silence.

“You remember that time I hit Walker with the golf club.”

“Yes,” my mother said slowly.

“Picture that. He went down on one knee pretty damn fast.”

“What happened?”

Rolling my eyes, I wiped the tears away. “He met someone else. Someone who made him feel alive. He had sex with her mom. The bastard cheated on me. I hate him.”

“Oh sweetheart. I’m so sorry this has happened to you. Baby, why don’t you head on home and spend a few days with us, I know your father would love to have you home.”

Laughing, I shook my head and said, “Oh I’m sure he would. The second he sees me he’s going to say I told you so.”

“He would not, Ava Moore. You’re father loves you and cares about you.”

Closing my eyes tightly, I whispered, “I know.”

Before I had a chance to open my eyes, I slammed into someone. My eyes flew open as my phone flew out of my hands and I let out a curse word.

“Shit!”

I had been stopped dead in my tracks. Dropping down, I reached for my phone and for the papers I’d just caused this man to drop. As I lifted my eyes, I sucked in a breath of air.

Beautiful hazel eyes stared into my blue. “I-I’m so sorry,” I said as I handed him a few pieces of paper.

The smile that spread across his face caused the earth to shake. Okay, not really, but it felt like it. I almost fell back onto my ass as I tried to contain the crazy feeling that zipped through my body when his hand brushed lightly across mine.

“I wasn’t looking where I was going,” I said as he helped me into a standing position.

The beautiful mystery man pinned me with his stare. My eyes roamed his perfect face. He was slightly tan, but I couldn’t tell if that was from the sun or his genes. His dark hair had that perfect messy look to it as he ran his hand through it and laughed.

“You don’t say? It’s not every day I run into a beautiful lady. I believe my day has officially been made.”

His voice sounded like an angel.

Okay, so I don’t really know what an angel would sound like, but if I could imagine it, I’d say this guy had it down. It was soft, yet masculine. Sexy, yet, compassionate.

“I’m glad,” I whispered.

He lifted his eyebrows and tiled his head as his eyes landed on my lips. “Glad you ran into me?”

My cell phone began ringing in my hand as I lifted it up to see it was my mother. Shit! I’d forgotten she was on the line. Giving him an awkward smile, I said, “No! Well, yes. No wait, I’m glad your day has been made … by me running into you.”

Oh dear God, Ava. Stop talking. Lifting my phone, I grinned and said, “It’s my mom.”

“May I at least get your name?”

My teeth sunk down into my lip as I let out a soft chuckle. “Ava.”

Mystery man’s eyes lit up as he gave me a slight nod, followed by the sexiest wink I’d ever seen. He lifted his hand to my chin and forced my eyes to his. If I hadn’t been acutely aware of every single action he made, I’d have missed his thumb move lightly over my bottom lip.

“The pleasure was most definitely mine, Ava.”

The stupid goofy grin on my face was evident as he chuckled, dropped his hand, and began walking off as I stood there in a stupor.

My phone rang again as I hit answer and whispered, “Hello?”

“Ava, are you okay? What happened?”

I shook my head to clear my thoughts as I glanced over my shoulder at my mystery man walking away from me. Getting a grip on myself, I headed toward my car. I was so thankful I had suggested meeting Johnny at the bakery.

“Sorry, Mom. I accidentally ran into someone. Hey, I think I’m going to do what you said. I need a few days of fresh country air. Besides, I can work from anywhere.”

I could practically hear my mother jumping. “Oh yah! When are you coming?”

“Today. I just need to go to my place and pack a bag.”

“Okay, sweetheart. Be careful driving, and we’ll see you in a few hours. Oh, I’ll make your favorite dinner!”

Reaching my car, I turned around again. I wasn’t sure why. Maybe I was hoping my mystery man would be standing there.

“Sounds great, Mom. I’ll let you know when I’m on my way. I love you, Mom.”

“I love you too, Ava. We’ll have you forgetting Johnny in no time.”

Slipping into the drivers seat, I started my car and said, “Johnny who?”

*** Copyright 2015 "Broken Love" Kelly Elliott***

Read the ABOVE PROLOGUE and then VOTE here ::

Purchase The Other Books From It's Series Here :

** Be sure to add it to your TBR pile on Goodreads! **

About the Author :

Kelly Elliott is married to a wonderful Texas cowboy who has a knack for making her laugh almost daily and supports her crazy ideas and dreams for some unknown reason...he claims it's because he loves her!

She’s also a mom to an amazing daughter who is constantly asking for something to eat while her fingers move like mad on her cell phone sending out what is sure to be another very important text message.

In her spare time she loves to sit in her small corner overlooking the Texas hill country and write.

One of her favorite things to do is go for hikes around her property with Gus....her chocolate lab and the other man in her life, and Rose, her golden retriever. When Kelly is not outside helping the hubby haul brush, move rocks or whatever fun chore he has in store for her that day, you’ll find her inside reading, writing or watching HGTV.

Find Kelly Elliott :

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