What I read, watched, and rocked out to in 2017

It's sort of still the beginning of the year, right? Good! So let's get onto my usual wrap up of what I read, watched, and rocked out to in the previous year!

First...

BOOKS – Total 4

BIG LITTLE LIES by Liane Moriarty

THE INEVITABLE COLLISION OF BIRDIE AND BASH by Candace Ganger
THE HANDMAID’S TALE by Margaret Atwood
THE LAST GUY by Tia Louise and Ilsa Madden Mils

I'm a little embarrassed at the lack of reading I did the past year! But all good books.
I did have a busy 2017 though. Teaching kindergarten full time. My oldest graduated high school! Attending and chauffeuring my kids' activities. I visited Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, the Bahamas. And I started my National Board teaching certification process.
 But dude. Even so. I promise to read more this year.

MOVIES – Total at the theater 6

Kong: Skull Island
Wonder Woman
Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 2
The Lego Ninjago Movie
Thor, Ragnorok
Star Wars: The Last Jedi

All of these with one or more of my kiddos! My top three were Wonder Woman, Thor and The Last Jedi.

CONCERTS- Total – 13!

Yes, music is my therapy, my passion.  I totally rock out and sing at the top of my lungs to decompress. So this is obviously where my entertainment dollar went to this year.

Kip Winger- Yes, that's me singing with him! Ahhhhhh!

Winger (twice)

Third Eye Blind

Scott Stapp, Trapt, Sick Puppies

Buckcherry (for the 16th time)

Daughtry and Nickelback
Ed Sheeran (9th row!!)
Josh Todd and the Conflict (twice)

Dua Lipa
Papa Roach (for the 14th and 15th time)

 

 

So, that's my year.

What were your fave books, movies, and concerts of 2017?

 

Demon's Ink

Do you want a paranormal YA for Halloween? How about DEMON'S INK by my blogger friend, Kimbra Kasch!

Here's the spooky premise:

There are lots of dangerous things hanging (or, maybe I should say, dangling) around Portland lately but, when a Demonic tattoo artist comes to town, everything goes to Hell, in DEMON’S INK.

 This young adult novel set in Portland, Oregon is available on Amazon now and with Halloween coming, you'll want to have a story to share...

DEMON'S INK: It's about art, that's more than anyone bargained for.

 Drake and Bartos come to the Pacific Northwest, where they open yet another tattoo shop but Bartos has no trouble dealing with the competition because there’s nothing normal about his art. And he’s stealing more than clients from the local skin artists. He's stealing their souls.

Customers fall in love with Bartos Slinderman’s tats but end up paying the ultimate price for their purchase because unlike Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Gray, they can’t walk away from this art and it’s beautiful until the artwork takes on a life of its own...

 

Tattoos are cool, but YIKES! I stayed up Friday night reading this book! There's a bit of a love triangle as well as the mysterious happenings. You can purchase Kim's book on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com!

Go visit Kim at her blog, too!  Speaking of tattoos, do you have one? I have one tiny heart tattoo. Hope to get another someday. But NOT from anyone named Bartos!

 

CONTROL Yourself!

This past Friday I visited one of my favorite bookstores, Anderson's Bookshop, to see our fabulous blogger friend, Lydia Kang!  She was there for her booksigning with Rachel Caine, author of the Morganville Vampire series. Before the signing, the ladies spoke of their writing journey and fun anecdotes about the life of an author. I was so excited to not only meet Lydia in person, but get her debut YA  novel, CONTROL (signed, of course)! Lydia was as lovely and amazing in person as she is online. If you haven't visited her informative and entertaining blog, check it out here. You can buy CONTROL here.

If by chance you have been hibernating, here's the Amazon blurb of CONTROL:
Set in 2150 -- in a world of automatic cars, nightclubs with auditory ecstasy drugs, and guys with four arms -- this is about the human genetic "mistakes" that society wants to forget, and the way that outcasts can turn out to be heroes.

When their overprotective father is killed in a terrible accident, Zel and her younger sister, Dylia, are lost in grief. But it's not until strangers appear, using bizarre sensory weapons, that the life they had is truly eviscerated. Zel ends up in a safe house for teens that aren't like any she's ever seen -- teens who, by law, shouldn't even exist. One of them -- an angry tattooed boy haunted by tragedy -- can help Zel reunite with her sister.
But only if she is willing to lose him.


Have a great week, all!

Three Questions With Leigh T. Moore

 

 

Leigh T. Moore (or LTM as many of us call her) is one of my favorite new authors. I read two of her books last year and loved them, and lucky me (and lucky you!), her next book comes out today! I read this in three days so I have three questions for lovely Leigh.

 

1. What are three adjectives that would best describe your main character, Ashley?

 

Ashley's sort of a contradiction. She's very laid back and "live and let live," but she's also a fighter. She has a strong sense of justice. The bulk of the story is her acting out in a rebellious and self-destructive way, but it's all fueled by her grief and anger over this bad thing that happened to her family. In her mind, they always did everything "right," so she thinks it's unfair and unjust. And she's mad.

 

Rebellious is right. You won't believe what illicit prank she pulls at school!

 

2. I was excited that I was able to read a companion to The Truth About Faking the following year after it debuted. How long did it take you to write (from first draft to last revision) The Truth About Letting Go?

I actually started writing Letting Go right after I finished Faking back in Spring 2010. I had an idea of what I wanted to do with it, but when I got about 15K words in, I stalled. I couldn't figure out what to do next, and I was too distracted by this other story in my head. (That other story became my book Rouge.) So Letting Go just sat on my computer for a few years. Then the popularity of Faking prompted me to go back to it, read it, and start thinking about how I could finish it. I finished writing it in November 2012, then I spent Dec-Jan revising. So I guess 2.5 years? I'm so happy with how it turned out, I'm really kind of glad I put it away until I had a clear vision of the ending.

 

And I thank you for revisiting this story! I love the realistic teen romance, but also that it deals with serious real life issues.

 

3. What would your main characters' favorite song (or band) be? 

I don't know if this is cheesy, but I kind of pictured Ashley as having a Ryan Adams moment, or even Fall Out Boy--Thnks Fr Th Mmrs and Sugar, We're Going Down. Colt's probably more into AC/DC... He's just having fun, whereas Ashley's got a vendetta. Jordan's probably a Fun. guy. LOL!

 

I could totally see Jordan turning up the Fun (but not too loud). :)

Here are the deets on LTM's fab new YA novel. Thanks, Leigh!

A companion to The Truth About Faking (link) (not a sequel; the books can be read out of order), The Truth About Letting Go (link) takes readers back to Shadow Falls, or more specifically Shadow Creek, with Ashley Lockett as she learns about friendship, love, and letting go.

Get me

The Truth About Letting Go (link) by Leigh Talbert Moore Ashley wants to smash everything in her once-perfect life. Charlotte wants to walk in Ashley's seemingly charmed shoes. Colt wants to turn Smalltown USA on its ear--with Ashley at his side. Jordan wants to follow his heart--but Ashley is the one sacrifice he never expected to make. Up until now, Ashley Lockett has followed the rules. She's always done the right thing, played it safe, gone to church. And then her ideal life is shattered when her dad dies suddenly. Now she's miserable and furious, and she decides to do everything opposite of how she lived before. She rejects safety, rules, faith, and then she meets Jordan. Jordan has big dreams, he's had a crush on Ashley for years, he's a great kisser... but he's also safe. Enter Colt. He is not safe, and he's more than willing to help Ashley follow her plans. Get it today on Amazon * Barnes & Noble * iTunes * Kobo Add it on Goodreads. About the Author:

Moore

Leigh Talbert Moore is a wife and mom by day, a writer by day, a reader by day, a former journalist and editor, a chocoholic, a caffeine addict, a lover of YA and new adult romance (really any great love story), a beach bum, and occasionally she sleeps. -The Truth About Faking is her debut young adult romance (on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, and Kobo) -Rouge is her first New Adult romantic suspense novel (on Amazon). Leigh loves hearing from readers; stop by and say hello! Blog * Facebook * Amazon Author page * Goodreads * Twitter * Tumblr

Untraceable tour: The Beats of Writing

Today is the second stop in the Untraceable blog tour! I am thrilled to be one of the first to read the YA thriller by Shelli Johannes-Wells. As you probably know, Shelli is the master marketer at the popular blog "Market My Words."

I give you unequivocal assurance that this book is a must read! My unbiased brief review is below.

Untraceable is unbelievably good. It's unbearable when the main character Grace's dad goes missing and totally unfair that the case might be closed. Grace's unadulterated love of nature is evident throughout the novel. The chemistry Grace has with another male character is undeniable. Yet, there's another boy who undoubtedly has her attention, too. There are plenty of unalienable characters that you will grow to despise them. The many twists and turns will keep you unhinged til the end. This book captured my undivided attention, and I read it in two days.

Untraceable comes out in 2 weeks!

Since you all know I love my tunes, I asked Shelli to share a little about her musical interests.

The Beats of Writing

1. What song can't you get out of your head this week?

I still have "Forget You" in my head. I don’t know why I still can't lose that song. It’s just fun to sing, and my kids love it.

2. What is your favorite band? (or bands)

Yikes. I love so many bands and songs. It really depends on my mood. This month, I love Coldplay, Adele, Rachel Yamagata, Jack Johnson.

3. What is the last concert you went to?

Oh gosh, I know the first. It was Dolly Parton's and Kenny Roger's Islands in the Stream tour. My mom took me with her. The last concert I went to was Black Eyes Peas and Pussycat Dolls. Or was it Rod Stewart? I did go to a KISS concert in an outdoor theatre - that was a fun experience. A little scary too.

4. Do you write to music? If so what types of songs do you listen to.

Once I plot out a story and know what is happening. Yes, I write to a scene. I have a different song for each chapter that puts me in the mood. For example, in Untraceable, the first scene is a chase scene in the woods. I listened to Muse’s "Time is Running Out." My character’s name is Grace so when I sit down to write I always play U2's "Grace." The lyrics are so perfect for my book.

5. If your life had a soundtrack, what would be your main song?

I actually posted about this along time ago, because my life is a soundtrack. (See post here.)
Right now? "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. No seriously – the songs that really touch me that I always go back to when I need to straighten out are "Live like We’re Dying" from Kris Allen, "Glitter in the Air" by Pink, or "Fix You" by Coldplay.

Great choices! Things are "Crazy" now I'm sure, and I hope you have some CRAZY awesome sales! Thank you, Shelli, for rockin' this interview!

Please visit Shelli at her blog or on Twitter. Also, check out her out at Goodreads!
You can sign up for Shelli's newsletter here. Anyone who is signed up for the newsletter will get a discount for the first 24 hours the books is released!
Untraceable will be available on November 29 in paperback and ebook at Amazon, B&N, iTunes, and other sellers.